Chapter 1: The Red Aurora
Chapter Text
Chapter 1: The Red Aurora
Arendelle, 1845
Auroras in the northern climates are fairly common affairs; the beautiful blue and green lights in the sky have decorated the north since time immemorial. Queen Elsa of Arendelle stood on the balcony of the royal palace in her maroon night robe, her hands resting on the smooth wooden railing as she watched the northern lights dance across the sky like ribbons attached to an invisible dancer.
The auroras were her oldest friend, of sorts. She and her sister would stare at them as children, and then for thirteen long years, they were one of her few companions. She told them her secrets, her fears, her desires to live a normal life and to see her family again. They never answered, but at least they always appeared to listen, soothing her loneliness at least a little.
In the far distance, just above the rocky bluffs that made up the hills around the royal palace, she spotted something unusual. Nestled in the blue and green lights was a ribbon of vivid red light, looking almost like a knife had cut open the aurora itself. It moved and swayed with the rest of the aurora, high up in the sky.
Soft footsteps came up behind her. âWatching the skies awaken, sis?â came Annaâs voice. Her sister Anna, Crown Princess of Arendelle, was dressed in her mossy green night robe as she padded beside her sister. Despite a difficult childhood filled with tragedy and separation, theyâd reconciled two years ago after Elsaâs disastrous coronation. Once Arendelle had thawed out, theyâd worked hard to be sisters again, getting to know each other after more than a decade apart. Now, two years later, they were the closest of friends and sisters.
âThatâs usually your line, Anna,â Elsa smiled. âThe skyâs awake, so Iâm awake,â she said, dramatically posing with the back of her hand resting against her forehead in imitation of her little sister.
Anna laughed and gently clapped her sisterâs upper arm before turning to admire the radiant skies, resting her elbows on the wooden railing. âYeah, I suppose it is. Whatâs got you so fascinated out here?â
Elsa pointed in the direction of the red aurora streak in the distance. âIâve never seen quite that vivid a color in the sky before. It almost doesnât look natural.â Something about the aurora unsettled her physically, made her feel the slightest bit nauseated and dizzy.
âMaybe it isnât? Maybe itâs magic or something? I suppose we could always send word to Grand Pabbie and ask if heâs ever seen something like that.â Annaâs brow furrowed. âIt almost looks like itâs slowly moving this way, doesnât it?â
Elsa inclined her head briefly. âPerhaps Iâll send for Master Hansteen tomorrow. I would imagine our Royal Astronomer would have some insight into this unusual phenomenon.â
Anna smiled softly. âPerhaps. But for now, we should probably turn in. You have open court in the morning, Your Majesty,â she giggled, overemphasizing her sisterâs formal title. They held hands, walking back inside the palace and down the long, candlelit halls. âGood night, Elsa,â she murmured in front of her door, holding her arms out.
Elsa hugged her sister before shooing Anna into her bedroom, then walked the rest of the way down the hall to her chambers. She smiled to herself the entire way, thankful and grateful that after all theyâd been through, she and her sister finally had everything they could ever want together. After a bath, she lay in bed, looking out the lattice window at the northern lights. The red streak wasnât visible from her window, and the soft pulsing of the northern lights eased her to sleep.
Almost a full week passed as the sisters kept occupied with matters of state. A vigorous debate about waterway usage rights had come up in open court, with several neighbors needing to be restrained by Royal guards for a moment until tempers cooled. That debate had spilled over into arguments about goat grazing near the western edge of Arendelleâs territory, with Elsa having to mediate days of recriminations in open court.
Open court was always challenging for her, especially when tempers were high. She had to play the role not only of monarch, but of judge and sometimes even barrister, depending on the case. Arendelle was such a small principality that there werenât more than a handful of barristers for the entire population, and less well-off citizens who needed to petition the Crown often had to rely on her counsel in the absence of their own.
âThank goodness this week is over with,â Elsa breathed as she sat down to dinner with Anna, the staff laying out a light repast of herring and potatoes on fine porcelain china. âIâm not sure I could deal with another day of the Jansens sniping at each other without having the lot of them put in the dungeon to cool off.â
Anna giggled at the thought. âIt wouldnât be the worst thing in the world for them to have a little space. Or maybe you could cast some magical ice hats on them⊠to help cooler heads prevail,â she guffawed, accidentally sending a piece of potato flying across the table.
Elsa cast a long look at her sister. âThatâs⊠almost funny, Anna. Almost. You know I try not to use my powers in public except on special occasions.â
âI know. But sometimes I swear people could use a bit of literal cooling off before their tempers get the best of them. Itâs hard to have a heated argument when youâre shivering!â Anna chewed a forkful of potatoes before continuing, the gold-trimmed silverware glinting in the candlelight. âOh, we got a messenger from Pabbie. He said heâs been watching the skies and hasnât ever heard of this phenomenon either.â
Elsa turned her head to look out the dining room windows. Eerie red light filtered in from the evening skies, light that should have faded with the sunset almost an hour ago. âI had a feeling that would be his answer. Itâs starting to alarm some of the townspeople.â
The conversation moved onto other mundane matters until after they finished eating and retired to the sitting room. Elsa cast open the glass doors to the balcony and slowly wandered out, a silver-trimmed china teacup in her hand and Anna at her side.
âItâs so much bigger now,â Anna said, staring upwards. The red aurora was almost directly overhead, looking like an angry wound. She lost her train of thought, mesmerized by the swirling clouds that floated beneath the crimson skies, looking almost like drops of blood diffusing into a puddle.
âDoes that⊠Anna, does that look like lightning to you? Inside it?â
Anna turned, craning her neck and squinting. âYeah⊠yeah, it does. Like a thunderstorm inside it. Elsa, what kind of aurora has storms inside it?â
âI donât know but⊠I donât like the look of it. Would you go downstairs and send for the Royal Astronomer, please?â
âSure thing,â her sister affirmed with a soft smile before heading back inside.
Elsa placed her hands on the wooden railing as she stared up into the scarlet storms. Her stomach began to churn, and as she angled her head to take in the vastness of the aurora, dizziness washed over her. In another split second, a ruby bolt of lightning reached out from the storm and struck the entire balcony. The last thing Elsa heard was the shattering of wood around and beneath her, and then everything went black.
Authorâs Notes
All credit for the general concept for this story goes to AOS_Skimmons and their story Another Life. I read through that fic (itâs a short one in the Agents of SHIELD fandom) and the general idea of taking a character and moving them to an AU through some mystical means, where they find themselves in an unexpected relationship change.
For reference, this story starts out post-Frozen canon, 2 years after Frozen and 1 year before Frozen 2.
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As always, please review, kudos, comment, like, follow, all that good stuff. I appreciate it.
Chapter 2: Awakening
Summary:
Elsa gripped the dresser's surface once more, feeling the slightest chill in her fingertips. The mantra she chanted for almost a decade and a half came back to her, unbidden. Conceal, don't feel. Don't let it show... yet.
Chapter Text
Chapter 2: Awakening
Elsa turned over in bed, enjoying the warmth of the morning sun on her. As she began to wake, her mind noticed things amiss. Why does the bed feel so much softer this morning? And the sheets⊠the sheets feel as smooth as ice? She was still in her maroon evening robe, which made no sense to her as she normally removed it before sleep.
Then she noticed the smell, or rather, the absence of it. Her mattress, like many wealthy Scandinavian homes, was stuffed with wool, and always had the softest hint of lanolin wafting from it. Her bed smelled like⊠nothing. She opened her eyes, sat upâŠ
⊠and shrieked.
Her room - the royal chambers - was gone. Her four-poster bed, the tall, vaulted ceilings⊠all gone. In its place, she woke to a gigantic bed in a mostly white room. A heavy white duvet lay on top of her, white dressers and bureaus lined one wall, and pale blue and white painted walls replaced the ornate patterns of her room. A white cylindrical object sat on the end of one of the dressers, some kind of rope running from its base into the wall.
Panic surged in her stomach as her throat tightened, her eyes watering as fright began to squeeze her chest. What happened to her? Where was she? As the initial shock subsided, a dull cacophony began to filter into her senses. She turned her head to see a small square window - much smaller than the usual diamond-shaped lattice windows in the palace - and what sounded like herds of animals braying outside.
She lay back down and squeezed her eyes closed. Itâs just a dream, itâs just a dream, she chanted to herself, pulling the duvet over her head to shut out the light and noise. Her voice followed her thoughts as she repeated her mantra to herself, louder and louder, but nothing changed.
And then she heard a muffled voice next to her. âElsaaaaaa⊠shut up! Iâm trying to sleep!â
Joy shoved panic aside bodily as Elsa pulled the covers down from her head, finding the buried body-sized lump next to her. âAnna! Anna, wake up! Somethingâs happened!â She tugged at the covers gently next to her, unearthing a bright auburn mane of hair.
âOh my god, Elsa⊠come on, itâs Sunday morning, please! Itâs the one day of the week we donât have to get up,â Anna grumbled before pulling a pillow over her head.
âAnna, please! This is imp-â she urged before stopping. âWait, why are you in my bed, Anna? Shouldnât you be in your bed?â
Anna rolled over, tossing the pillow aside with a confused look on her face. âWhat do you mean âmy bedâ, Elsa? This is our bed - it always has been. AlsoâŠâ she scrubbed her face with her palms, rubbing away the sleepiness, âWhy are you saying my name like that?â
âSaying your name like what, Anna?â
âLike that. Like Ah-na, instead of Anna. Thatâs so weird. Did you have, like, a really weird nightmare or something?â
Elsa shook her head. âWhat- what are you talking about? Thatâs your name!â
Anna sat up, her hair a massive explosion of copper, as the bedsheet fell off her naked breasts. âWhatâs going on with you, Elsa? Last night you were so exhausted from having to work late and today youâre acting like⊠I donât know, really weird.â
The blonde shot out of the bed as though electrically shocked, practically slamming into the dresser as she wrung her hands. âAnna! You- youâre naked! In my bed! What- why? What is happening?â
âYou tell me, Elsa,â Anna scowled, before her face relaxed into a soft smile. âBesides, you know I always sleep naked. Anyway, whatâs up? You can tell me anything. You know that, right? Youâre my-â
â-Sister, I know. I know, Anna. Itâs⊠I donât even know how to explain⊠why are you looking at me like that?â
Annaâs mouth hung open. âSister? What are you talking about, Elsa? Iâm your WIFE. How⊠how do you⊠what is wrong with you this morning?â She held up her left hand for emphasis, a gold wedding band on the third finger. No answer was forthcoming from the blonde, however, because she fainted on the spot.
Elsa woke again to find herself back in the same bed, with a cold compress on her head. Her stomach lurched once more; whatever dream she was having wasnât over. She slowly sat up and found a note on the nightstand, left with a fountain pen the likes of which sheâd never seen before. The handwriting, however, was unmistakably her sisterâs.
Ran out to the store to get you some medicine. Back soon. Love you, A
She slowly stood and examined her surroundings, the shock having worn off. Despite the odd furnishings, it was still clearly a bedroom. A large black mirror hung on one wall, while a regular mirror was affixed to another. A small box glowed on one of the nightstands, somehow showing the time. She scratched her head, staring for a long moment at the little box, but eventually moved past it to the dresser.
With a gasp, she picked up a rectangular painting off the surface before realizing it wasnât a painting at all. It was some kind of daguerreotype, but in color and clearer than any sheâd ever seen brought to the Royal Court. The contents of the image were even more startling; her in a gorgeous white dress with blue diamond patterns on the frills and exposed shoulders, and Anna in a rich green dress with a gold undershirt, standing under a green arch covered in liliesâŠ
⊠exchanging rings in front of a priest. She was holding a wedding image - her wedding image - and nearly dropped it in shock. Across the top of the image, engraved carefully in the metal frame, was a small inscription.
Anna and Elsa June 21, 2016
Elsa gasped. Surely this must be some kind of cruel joke, she thought, disbelieving that she was somehow 171 years in the future, with her sister who was pretending to be her wife. And yet the strange devices around the room and Annaâs reaction shattered that comfortable explanation easily and quickly.
Carefully placing the glass and metal image back down on the dresser, she shed her maroon evening robe and rummaged through the drawers to find a hooded garment of some kind and trousers made of some bizarre, slippery fabric. After pulling them on, she marveled at their comfort; they appeared skin-tight, but somehow expanded and contracted with her movements.
Elsa tiptoed to the bedroom door and nudged it open with one hand. Her breath caught in her throat as she looked around the main room. The date on the portrait was no lie; she was clearly in the future somehow. Familiar objects like chairs and couches were intermingled with some of the most foreign objects sheâd ever seen in her life. At a small desk near a window, a silver hinged rectangular box with what looked like letters all over one part was glowing. There were no candles of any kind; instead, glowing balls of glass hung from the walls and ceiling. In another part of the room, some kind of kitchen area, massive silver metal boxes lined the walls, making dull humming noises. Near the couch, another giant black mirror hung on the wall.
Elsa sat down on the couch gingerly, unsure what was even safe to be near. At least she recognized the couch and coffee table; she looked at the papers scattered across it and picked one up. The writing on it was astonishing calligraphy, so finely detailed, better than the penmanship of even the Royal Secretary.
Her hand flew to her mouth as she examined one of the letters. The correspondence- oddly crinkly in her fingers - was addressed to Elsa and Anna Beck, on a street named Commonwealth Avenue in Boston, Massachusetts. America? she said to herself. How in the world did I end up thousands of landmiil away from home?
She mentally thanked her royal tutors for teaching her fluency in English (along with many other languages), else sheâd be in even more trouble at the moment. Who was she supposed to be? Who was her sister in this crazy, mixed up place far in the future? Another thought struck her like a blow from behind. Anna had been speaking English when she awoke, not Danish. Her sister, though more lax in her studies than Elsa, was still fluent enough in the required languages of the court.
Elsa finished making a circuit of the small dwellingâs main area and found herself in the last room she hadnât explored, the bathroom. She breathed a sigh of relief; this was one room that her adventure hadnât completely obscured; the chamber pot, sink, and bathtub were all obvious, even if they were connected to the wall in unusual ways. She stifled a giggle; who in their right mind would affix a chamber pot to the wall instead of having it be something easily wheeled in and out?
An unfamiliar sound came from the main room, like pieces of metal impacting each other. Elsa tiptoed out of the bathroom to investigate; her hands tingled as she readied her powers. Thank goodness that hasnât changed, she thought to herself. The noise abated as Anna opened the door to the dwelling, carrying some kind of paper bags.
âAnna?â
Anna rolled her eyes as she brushed dust off her green flannel shirt and jeans. âHey, Elsa. I guess youâre still on this whole pronounce-my-name-weird thing? Are you still feeling⊠uh, faint?â
Elsa shook her head as she tamped down on her magic. âNo, Iâm⊠Iâm feeling better. Thank you for taking care of me.â She shuffled into the room and sat down at the end of the couch, watching the redhead carefully as she unpacked strange boxes and jars from the paper sacks. âSo⊠what did you get at the⊠the store?â
âOh, I figured you must have been really sick from something this morning, so I got some oatmeal, milk, a small jar of Pepto, and your favorite, Ghirardelli!â Items practically flew out of the bags as Anna tossed them on the countertop.
âMy favoriteâŠâ Elsa murmured before looking carefully at the box in Annaâs hands. The name was unfamiliar to her (clearly Sardinian), but the contents were anything but. âChocolate! Oh Anna, thank you!â Her shoulders let go of the tension sheâd been holding. No matter what this bizarre future was, it still had chocolate in some form.
âSoâŠâ Anna said, plopping gracelessly down on the couch next to her, âBe honest with me. Are you really feeling better? You were pretty out of it this morning.â
Elsa carefully looked over this woman who claimed she was her wife, yet was also her sister. This was unquestionably Anna, but not exactly the same person. The woman in front of her was decidedly older; tiny wrinkles near the corners of her mouth and eyes hinted that she was easily Elsaâs age, if not older. Her sisterâs hands were soft and smooth, the hands of someone whoâd grown up in the luxurious life of a royal family member. This Annaâs hands were rougher, calloused in places, with short, bluntly cut nails. Her sister wore beautiful, complementary outfits befitting a royal princess. This Anna wore fluffy hooded garments and trousers made of some kind of rough blue cloth. Close up, she could spot a few grey hairs interwoven in Annaâs auburn mane.
âI⊠um⊠Iâm still not feeling like myself. To be honest, Iâm not myself at all, Anna,â she said, pronouncing the name as sheâd once heard the American ambassador once say it before both sisters sternly corrected him. Her mouth soured at the flat, nasal intonation. âCan⊠can I ask you some questions, and promise me youâll be honest with me no matter how unusual the questions are?â
Anna smiled and laid her head down in Elsaâs lap, clearly startling the woman momentarily. âSure, anything you want, baby,â she grinned with a broad smile.
Elsa swallowed, her throat bobbing as the words fought their way out of her throat. âWhat⊠whatâs the date, today?â
Anna arched an eyebrow at her before answering. âApril 22.â
âAnd the year?â
âElsaâŠâ
âPlease, Anna. Please indulge me?â
A short sigh. â2022.â
Elsaâs breath caught in her throat. One hundred and seventy seven years. âAnd⊠weâre in Boston, Massachusetts?â
âYeah, like we have been since college! Elsa, whatâs go-â
Elsa held her hand up close to Annaâs cheek, still in her line of sight. âPlease⊠just let me finish. You said college⊠where are we from? Originally, before college?â
âAll right, Iâm going to play along, though if you have amnesia or something, I swear Iâm taking you to urgent care. Yes, we met my freshman year of college. Iâm originally from Eagle Valley, Indiana, and youâre from Minneapolis, though your familyâs originally from Norway.â Anna sat up, twisting and contorting herself into a cross-legged seat on the couch as her gaze bore down on Elsa. âDo you⊠do you really have amnesia or something, Elsa? Did you hit your head?â
Elsa considered the question, pursing her lips gently. Amnesia would be a lot easier to explain than⊠whatever had happened to her with the red aurora in the skies over the palace. âI⊠I donât know? Iâm not sure I would remember if I had hit my head if I had amnesia afterwards, Anna,â she smiled faintly.
âUh⊠yeah, I guess that was a silly question,â Anna answered, running a hand down her face. âSo you really donât remember⊠what, any of this? Any of us?â Her cheek twitched and her lip trembled as she considered what her wife was saying.
âI- Iâm sorry, Anna. This is all so new to me. Iâm trying to figure out whatâs happened to me, I swear. I just⊠donât know.â Her voice broke as she sunk her face into her hands, hot tears beginning to flow. âIâm so sorry, Anna. I⊠I donât know whatâs happened.â
Anna stood up from the couch and gently lifted Elsa with her, tears of her own gathering. âItâs okay, Elsa. Letâs⊠letâs get you to MGH. Someone in urgent care can probably help us. Iâll get an Uber.â
âAn⊠Uber?â She was puzzled at the German expression.
âA car? Wow, you really donât remember anything.â Anna pulled out her iPhone, grinned like an idiot for the facial recognition, and opened up the Uber app as Elsa stood wide-eyed in shock, seeing this black piece of glass light up so magically. A few minutes later, Anna put on her shoes, reminded Elsa to do the same (who marveled at the softness and comfort of her modern sneakers), and walked out the front door of their apartment building.
And Elsa promptly came to a stop, frozen in shock at the sight of the road with so many carriages driving on it at unimaginable speeds. She stared at the multitude of colors, each blazing by at what was easily twice the speed of Arendelleâs fastest horsemen. In front of their apartment building was a grey carriage⊠with no horses at all. Swallowing the words that would have indicated something far more than memory loss, she laced her fingers together with Annaâs, caught her breath, and walked towards the carriage.
âIâm afraid I canât find anything obviously wrong,â the nurse practitioner said after she finished examining Elsa, who was getting dressed in the examination room. âWeâve ruled out substantial blunt trauma, and I donât see any signs of stroke or other neurological illnesses. You said sheâs not been using any kind of drugs or substantial alcohol?â
Anna shook her head, looking around the bleak waiting room of Massachusetts General Hospitalâs Urgent Care walk-in clinic. âNot to my knowledge. We have the occasional wine cooler here and there, but our days of going out and getting blitzed have been over for a while. Are you sure thereâs nothing else wrong?â
The nurse looked at the diagnostic data on her iPad. âThereâs one minor detail, but I donât see how it could be related. How old did you say she was?â
âSheâs three years older than me, so sheâs 34.â
âShe doesnât appear to be much more than in her early 20s, Mrs. Beck. As I said, that wouldnât in any way explain the retrograde amnesia, but it is unusual.â
Anna thought carefully. Elsa had always been beautiful, a sort of timeless beauty that would be equally elegant at 20 or 60 years old. From the time sheâd met her, those first few days on Boston Universityâs harsh urban campus, she just knew Elsa would be the kind of person who would be gorgeous no matter what age she was. She opened up her phone and scrolled through her recent photos, pulling up a photo of the two of them having lunch at Samurai Express, their favorite local Japanese food place. They were both making ridiculous faces for the photo, with Elsa holding up a little piece of the plastic grass on the sushi tray like a mustache in front of Annaâs face.
She pinched the screen and zoomed in on her wife, but didnât see anything grossly out of the ordinary. The woman in the photos seemed like the same woman sheâd brought to the clinic.
The door to the examination room quietly clicked open and Elsa shuffled out, eyes still wide at the incredible array of medical devices and technology around her. For someone who had never seen light switches just a day ago, the world was a bewildering place. Elsa trembled slightly as she found Anna, clinging to her arm.
âSo that said, Mrs. Beck, the challenge with unexplained retrograde amnesia is that because we donât have a cause, we donât have a remedy either. Many patients do recover their memories over time; taking them to familiar places and exposing them to strong memories may help speed the process along a little,â the nurse smiled. âOtherwise, your wife is a healthy young woman, but I do feel itâs important to mention that thereâs a chance she may not recover her memories, so be prepared for that possibility. Letâs plan to have Elsa come back in a couple of days for a checkup, all right?â
Anna nodded, shook the nurse practitionerâs hand, and ushered her wife out of the clinic. âWell, that was a $50 co-pay we wonât get back. I guess at least thereâs nothing horrendously wrong, since our insurance isnât exactly Gold tier,â she sighed before noticing the blank look in Elsaâs expression. âIâll explain later. Letâs⊠well, letâs go home for now, and I guess weâll figure things out from there?â
âWeâve been married⊠six years?â Elsa asked tentatively, holding the picture frame in her hands as Anna changed into a t-shirt and sweatpants after another Uber ride back home. The horseless carriage coachman on the way back was a talkative one, but she could barely understand him. She tensed up immediately when she felt Annaâs arms around her, hot breath tickling her right ear.
âYep. Happiest day of my life, marrying you,â Anna smiled, kissing Elsaâs earlobe and sending the woman into rigid shock for a moment. âGranted, it did take you almost half a decade to ask me, but you were worth the wait.â
Elsa cleared her throat. âHow⊠how long have we been together?â
Anna sighed, hugging Elsa tight. âAlmost 13 years. We met when I was 18 and a freshman at BU - Boston University.â
âWe waited quite a while to get married, then. Not to be crass or improper, but we were quite old when we married, werenât we?â
âElsa, what are you talking about? Both our parents gave us shit for getting married so damn young. Donât you remâŠâ Anna stopped herself as her face flushed. âI- Iâm sorry. Itâs⊠Iâm sorry. I know you donât remember.â She took a deep breath and sat down on the bed. âMy mother was livid that I was getting married at 23 to someone who wasnât even out of law school then.â
Elsa imperceptibly shook her head. A woman marrying at 23 was practically an irredeemable spinster in her time; she herself had faced intense scrutiny from the Royal Court for not choosing a husband and king to rule at her side. At 23, she was already past what was considered her prime and had she not been Queen, she would have had no chance to settle down and start a family. No man wanted to marry a woman that old, not when the life expectancy was around 45 years old.
âI see. I, uh⊠Iâm a lawyer?â
âYou are, and a damn good one too. Youâre probably only a few years away from making partner. Thatâs⊠thatâs part of the reason why I said what I did about money earlier at the clinic,â Anna offered with a tight smile. âWeâve been saving up like crazy so you can buy your partnership when the time comes.â
Elsa tried not to look more bewildered, nodding as though she understood. âAnd⊠what do you do for work, Anna?â
Annaâs smile grew. âGosh, this is so weird. Itâs almost like a first date again. In factâŠâ she stood up, grabbing her phone and scrolling through nearby restaurants. âLetâs do that, Elsa!â
âDo what?â
âLetâs go on a dinner date, so we can get to know each other again! How about⊠the nurse said someplace familiar. How about Samurai Express, tomorrow night after work?â Anna practically salivated at the idea; Samurai Express was their go-to when they wanted a fix of something Asian but not at Boylston Streetâs usually crazy prices, and it wasnât too long a subway ride to get there.
Elsa gripped the dresserâs surface once more, feeling the slightest chill in her fingertips. The mantra she chanted for almost a decade and a half came back to her, unbidden. Conceal, donât feel. Donât let it show⊠yet. âI⊠that sounds nice, Anna. Iâd like that. ButâŠâ
Anna put her phone down to look at her wife, forgetting for a moment that sheâd lost her memories. âBut what, Elsa? You love going there with me. Well, mostly.â
âOh, it wasnât⊠umm, it wasnât the restaurant that put me off, Anna. Itâs⊠work. I donât remember the first thing about being a lawyer. What am I going to do?â she cried plaintively, looking into the mirror at her reflection and seeing Anna over her shoulder.
âDonât worry about it,â Anna smiled. âWe have our receipt from the doctorâs office today, so weâll just call you in sick tomorrow, and maybe Tuesday too. That way itâll give you time to rest, and hopefully start to remember things.â
Elsa breathed a sigh of relief, her shoulders releasing the tension sheâd been storing in them. âThat⊠that sounds wonderful, Anna.â She yawned and looked at the bed, practically hearing it calling her name. âI know itâs probably early for you yet, but do you mind if I try to get some rest? This has been⊠quite a day.â
âOf course, go ahead.â Anna began to gather up a blanket and a pillow in her arms.
âWhat are you doing?â
âI uh, I figured with you not being able to remember anything, maybe I should sleep on the couch?â Anna turned to look at Elsa, reading her face for a reaction of some kind to guide her decision.
Elsa walked over to her and put her hand on Annaâs bicep. âDonât be silly. This is your⊠our bed, and while the couch was quite comfortable earlier, itâs not a substitute for the bed. Itâs fine, Iâll be fine.â She smiled to herself; she and her Anna had many sleepovers in the last couple of years, making up for lost time when they were growing up.
Annaâs lower lip trembled. âThatâs⊠thank you. That means a lot. I havenât had to sleep alone in a really long time, except for the occasional business trip.â Given her wifeâs amnesia, she decided to keep her clothes on as she crawled under the covers and waited for Elsa to join her.
Moments later, with the lights off, Elsa wrapped an arm around Annaâs middle, only to hear her murmur, half-asleep, âHey⊠usually Iâm the big spoon.â
Authorâs Notes
One of the most fun things - and challenging things about a story like this is the time changes. Elsa is from canon 1842, so a lot of things we take for granted didnât exist or were different. Italy, for example, was not a unified nation, something that will come up time and again. Germany and Bavaria were separate. Norwegian as a language wasnât in use at that time.
There will be a much bigger authorâs note about a funny part of history in chapter 4. Stay tuned.
Join The Party
Enjoyed this story? Want to meet fellow readers and discuss? Join the Elsanna Shenanigans community on Discord at discord.gg/TU9NpnH (copy and paste that URL for AO3 friends, go to discord dot gg slash TU9NpnH for FFN friends).
As always, please review, kudos, comment, like, follow, all that good stuff. I appreciate it.
Chapter 3: Truth Hurts
Summary:
"You're not Elsa, not my wife. I don't know what kind of sick joke this is, but you're not her." She stabbed a finger into the blonde's chest. "Who. Are. You."
Chapter Text
Chapter 3: Truth Hurts
By the time Elsa woke in the morning, the apartment was empty. Anna had left a note in the kitchen area for her.
Called into work for you, youâre off until Wednesday. Breakfast in the fridge. Back around 5 PM. Love u
She smiled, the handwriting just as playful and elegant as her sisterâs. Despite her assurances before bed, Elsa had still been nervous to sleep with her sisterâs doppelganger, knowing that this Anna was romantically attached to her. Her nervousness was unfounded; Anna had been snuggly, but not inappropriate in any way, something she was grateful for. Having Anna sleeping next to her felt like home.
After putting on the same clothes sheâd worn the previous day, she looked around the apartment, wondering where all the clocks were, then finally noticed that many of the small metal boxes throughout had the time in numeric format, a far cry from the usual clocks in the palace. It was already almost 11 AM; she never slept that late at home. Usually Kai or Gerda would be rousing her just before dawn to begin her days.
Elsa wandered into the bathroom to wash, looking in the mirror. Despite all the change around her, nothing looked amiss at the woman in the mirror. If this were all a dream, it was at least a dream that hadnât changed her. Her vision blurred as pangs of longing for her home clenched at her heart. The modern world was astonishing, to be sure, but home was home. As she scrubbed her face, she wondered what was happening with her Anna. Was time moving at the same pace in the castle? Was she missing, Anna searching frantically for her?
She dared not go outside alone into a world that was dizzying, that she didnât understand, so she made do looking around the apartment for the day, reading books and maps, trying to orient herself as best as she could. Anna would be home in a few hours, theyâd go to dinner together, and perhaps she could get some more answers.
The two women walked hand in hand into Samurai Express, a small cafe on Boylston Street. Floor-to-ceiling glass windows let diners watch passersby as they ate sushi off of pale wooden planks, on plastic-coated placemats covered in photos of individual pieces of sushi. At each slightly wobbly table, tall cups were filled with paper-wrapped chopsticks and bottles of soy sauce. Music in an unrecognizable foreign language played in the background; Elsa only caught a few letters of English here and there, mostly something called âBTSâ.
Anna led them to a table in the far corner of the restaurant, gallantly pulling out the laminated wood cafeteria-style chair for Elsa, who exaggerated a bow as she sat. âThank you, milady,â Elsa grinned, unfolding the flimsy paper napkin across the magical fabric of her trousers. The decor in the shop was so foreign, she had no idea what class of establishment she was in. Was it formal? Informal? Peasant? âAre⊠are we dressed appropriately for this place?â
Anna snorted as she unwrapped a pair of chopsticks and broke them apart. âElsa, this is a fast food joint. As long as youâre wearing clothes, youâre fine. I see you found my yoga pants, though.â
âI⊠did, yes. I guess I did? Is that what these are called?â Elsa said, looking down as she gently pinched the stretchy fabric. âTheyâre so comfortable! Much more comfortable thanâŠâ
âThan what?â
âThan⊠umm⊠other clothes that I saw in the drawers.â Elsa looked around at the table, everything unfamiliar. Though sheâd learned of Japanâs existence from her tutors, sheâd never seen anything Japanese outside of a book in her life. âIâve never had⊠I mean⊠I donât remember having this before. What⊠what should I request? What did I have⊠the last time I was here?â
Anna reached a hand across the table, her brow furrowed in concern. âHey⊠is this too much for you? Is this too overwhelming? We can always get something to go.â
Elsa tilted her head. âTo go⊠where?â
âTo go. Takeout. You know, food to take home.â Annaâs head matched Elsaâs tilt, as she stared at her wife, biting the very edge of her lip with her teeth. Something felt more off to her than normal. On the way home from the clinic yesterday, sheâd read up about retrograde amnesia and learned that episodic memory - specific events in the past - were most likely to be affected, but basic semantic memory - how to communicate, the basics of life - usually was not. Elsa not recognizing something as simple as takeout worried Anna.
âAh. No, no, this is fine. Iâm just⊠Iâm not sure what to do, Anna.â She took the proffered hand and held it in her own, feeling the soft, smooth, warm skin. This Annaâs fragrance was different than her sister, but no better or worse. It still boggled her mind that this Anna was slightly more than a decade older than her sister and almost a decade older than herself.
Anna smiled softly and clasped Elsaâs hand in both of hers. âWell⊠donât you worry, Elsa, donât you worry one little bit. Iâm here to take care of you for once instead of you taking care of me. As for the food, donât worry about it, either.â Anna turned to the server already carrying food to their table. âHey Jenny!â
The server, a slightly built Japanese woman, smiled as she plopped down a tray already piled high with a variety of small dishes. âHey you two. Havenât seen you in⊠a couple of days,â she smiled more broadly. The Becks were quite regular visitors, and almost always ordered the same thing. âHereâs the seaweed salad, one order of pork gyoza for you, Elsa, one order of shrimp shumai for you, Anna, and your usual maki combo. Anything else?â
âNo thanks, Jenny. I think weâre all set,â grinned Anna as she practically drooled over the food, chopsticks hovering over her favorite pieces.
Elsa sat stunned, not sure what to even do with the foreign foods all over the table. After watching Anna pick up a piece of a tuna roll, dip it just slightly in the soy sauce dish, and plop it in her mouth, she made her best effort to copy the motions, but struggled to even get the chopsticks into her hands.
Anna frowned as she watched Elsaâs clumsy movements. Motor skill degradation was extremely rare in retrograde amnesia, as Elsa struggled with the same eating implements that, two days ago, she operated with the grace of an orchestra conductor. Not that she was any kind of doctor, but none of Elsaâs symptoms matched up with retrograde amnesia, at least from the way WebMD described it.
After a few more moments of struggling, Elsa looked around carefully to make sure no one was watching in disdain or scorn and simply picked up the maki roll, dipped it, and ate it. Moments later, an explosion of flavor in her mouth made her eyes bulge. After swallowing, she gasped, âWhat⊠what IS this, Anna? Itâs so good! Iâve never had anything like this in my life!â
âAre you sure you want to know?â
Elsa nodded vigorously as she took another piece and ate it voraciously.
âThatâs toro, fatty tuna. You- do you actually like it?â Anna asked, staring at her wife, her lips slightly parted and eyes wide.
âOh spirits, yes! Itâs amazing, Anna,â she gushed as she ate another piece, oblivious to Annaâs reaction. âThank you so much for bringing me here.â
Annaâs smile didnât reach her eyes as she ate a couple of pieces of the sushi, watching her wifeâs eating. Amnesia or not, oneâs general tastes werenât supposed to change a whole lot⊠and her wife hated raw fish. Elsa would always get the California rolls with the fake crab meat inside, and usually a couple of cucumber rolls; sometimes, Elsa couldnât even manage that and ordered the fried udon noodles instead.
She mulled over the facts sheâd gathered thus far. The person in front of her was younger than her wife, based on her physical appearance - something sheâd noticed only after the nurse practitioner had mentioned it. Elsaâs hair was more blonde; her wifeâs hair had strands of white that had lightened it considerably over the years. She definitely had some kind of memory loss, but it wasnât normal. Her preferences were different, especially around foods. Normal things in daily life confused her.
Nothing explained what was happening. The only possibilities she could think of were outlandish - an imposter masquerading as her wife? Alien kidnapping? Anna shook her head, before noticing that Elsa had spoken to her.
âI- Iâm sorry, Elsa. What did you say?â
âOh, I was apologizing for being a bad date, eating so quickly. So⊠you said Iâm a lawyer, but you never said what you do for work,â she said, wiping her soy sauce covered fingers on her napkin.
Anna shrugged. âWell, Iâm not nearly as exciting as you are, honey. I work at a local ad agency.â
Elsa blinked, the words meaning nothing to her. âWhat⊠does that entail?â
âWell, for the most part, people hire us to create ads for them. See over across the street?â Anna pointed at a fashion boutique, the windows filled with mannequins showing off a variety of black knee-high leather boots. âWhen a company wants to advertise what itâs selling, we help them.â
âAh! So you hire people like⊠like merchants do, barkers to let people know somethingâs available?â Elsa thought of the barkers in the city square in Arendelle, shouting out the dayâs specials. Anna had one of her guards stationed near the square, waiting for the confectioner to announce his wares that day. If her favorite, chocolate truffles from Geneva, were available, the guard was to relay that information back to the palace immediately.
Anna set her iPhone on the table, staring at Elsa once more, as though she were an alien who had just arrived on the planet. âNot⊠quite. We run mostly digital ads these days - ads on things like phones and tablets. Here, let me show you.â She opened her phoneâs browser to a news page and in seconds, an ad for the boutique across the street popped up, the exact boots in the window on the screen. âSee? That way anyone eating in this restaurant, if they hadnât already noticed the shop across the street, would get the same ad on their phones, too.â
Elsa nodded, feigning understanding as she wrung her hands together under the table. Whatever a phone was, it was apparently the name of the black glass mirror Anna carried around that lit up and suddenly turned into a small book. At every turn, this world grew more foreign to her. She popped the last piece of tuna in her mouth and chewed silently as Anna just⊠watched her. âArenât you hungry, Anna?â
âHmm? Oh⊠you know, Iâm suddenly not feeling all that hungry. I think Iâll get mine to go after all.â She bit into a California roll, her eyes staring off into the distance for a few moments before looking back at her wife, her eyebrows knitting together as she arrived at a decision in her mind. âHey Jenny! Can I get the check please?â she half-shouted, raising her arm in the air.
After dinner, the two headed back to their apartment. As soon as Anna locked the front door, she pulled Elsa into an intimate embrace, pressing her body against the blonde, firmly kissing her on the lips as she threaded her fingers through Elsaâs hair. For her part, Elsa stiffened, unsure what to do with a hug that was clearly more than sororal. Annaâs hands started to roam down her lower back, and Elsa squeaked, her body as rigid as rock.
âA-Anna⊠I donât⊠um, I donât rememberâŠâ Elsa stuttered as Anna hiked the hem of the hoodie up off her waist, cool air caressing her skin. Before she could do anything else, Anna spun her around, her warm fingers tracing lines over Elsaâs skin, the fingertips feather-light touch walking a path across her lower back.
And then just as soon as Annaâs fierce embrace began, it vanished. Elsa turned around and opened the eyes sheâd been squeezing closed under Annaâs advances, only to confront something even worse.
Anna leaned against the wall, her arms crossed, her brow creased, and her eyes blazing.
âWho are you?â
Elsa gasped, her hand flying to her mouth as her stomach did a backflip. She couldnât put her finger on what specifically just happened, but she knew without a shadow of a doubt that Anna knew she was lying about the amnesia. âW-what do you mean? Anna, itâs⊠itâs me, Elsa. Who else would I be?â she murmured, wringing her hands.
Anna growled as she pushed herself off the wall, encroaching on Elsaâs space. âYouâre not Elsa, not my wife. I donât know what kind of sick joke this is, but youâre not her.â She stabbed a finger into the blondeâs chest. âWho. Are. You.â
âYou- you wouldnât believe me if I told you,â she breathed, her hands ice cold and clammy. She backed into the kitchen and found herself pressed against the refrigerator door. âH-how did you know?â
Anna smirked, the lopsided smile still not reaching her eyes. âElsa- my Elsa, hates fish. With a passion. Wonât eat it at all, can barely stand the smell of it. She only goes to Samurai Express with me out of pure devotion.â
Anna slowly walked away from Elsa, into the kitchenette area. âMy Elsa knows what a smartphone is, and amnesia wouldnât take away the basic motor skills needed to operate one, even if you had no idea what you were looking at. Your language skills and motor skills appear fine.â
Anna picked up a piece of mail from the counter idly, twisting it in her hands until the paper gave way, tearing. âMy Elsa knows how to use chopsticks. She spent a year in Korea as an exchange student, using those super slippery metal chopsticks. Again, amnesia wouldnât disrupt motor skills without other serious, obvious issues - issues you donât have.â
Anna whirled, suddenly closing the distance between the two, her breath hot on Elsaâs cheeks. âMy Elsa has a tattoo of a snowflake on her lower back. And thereâs nothing on yours. So I will ask you one more time: who. are. you?â
Elsa bowed her head. âYouâre right. Iâm⊠not her. But I am Elsa, and you are Anna, and I know you⊠but not as my wife. As my sister.â She held her hands up in surrender. âI⊠I can try to explain everything that I know, but you may not believe it.â She slowly moved from the kitchen to the sitting area, and eased herself onto the couch, squeezing herself into one corner of it. Anna sat down at the other end of the couch, eyes laser focused on the blonde.
âThis is going to sound crazy, but please let me finish, and then you can ask questions. Iâm Elsa, daughter of Agnarr, Queen of the kingdom of Arendelle. I am 23 years of age, born in the year 1819, the eldest of twoâŠâ
Authorâs Notes
Japan didnât establish diplomatic relations with Norway until 1905 when Norway dissolved its union with Sweden. Prior to that, however, Japan and Sweden didnât sign a diplomatic treaty of any kind until 1868, so itâs unlikely that canon Elsa would have ever interacted with anything Japanese.
Writing canon Elsa in the modern day is a treat, because thereâs a lot of âdid this existâ and âwhen did X happenâ.
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Chapter 4: What Happens Next
Summary:
In short order, three things happened.
The smart assistant acknowledged with a chime.
The lights came on.
Elsa shot off the couch like she'd been shocked.
Chapter Text
Chapter 4: What Happens Next
â⊠and then I awoke to find myself here,â the blonde finished, looking up at Anna on the other end of the couch after telling an abridged version of her lifeâs story and the events leading up to her appearance in the modern day.
Anna gave a low whistle. âThat is one hell of a fairy tale, Elsa. How do I know itâs true? How do I know youâre not just someone - granted, a really talented someone - playing a part to get to me?â She looked up sharply at the blonde, a look of alarm on her face as though sheâd said too much.
âGet to you? What does that mean?â
She shook her head slightly. âNothing. Itâs nothing, never mind. So youâre really a time traveler from the past, here to⊠what? Observe the future? Take some futuristic technology back to your kingdom so you can conquer Europe? Whatâs your angle?â Anna prodded.
Elsa sighed. âAnna, I didnât do this by choice. The storm - whatever it was - brought me here, and I have no idea how to get back, or if this is permanent.â She laid back against the couch cushions, her shoulders sinking as she finally admitted out loud what sheâd feared since waking up in this new world, what sheâd mulled over during the morning alone. What would become of her kingdom, her sister? âSo⊠this being the future and such, has science progressed enough to explain what has happened to me?â
The dying light of the day faded away, leaving the little apartment in shadow. Anna smirked at Elsa briefly, a mischievous look in her eye, before turning her head over her shoulder. âAlexa, turn on the lights.â
In short order, three things happened.
The smart assistant acknowledged with a chime.
The lights came on.
Elsa shot off the couch like sheâd been shocked.
âScience has definitely advanced since your day, but Iâm not sure if anyoneâs ever solved this kind of weird situation,â Anna said, gesturing for Elsa to sit back down. She suppressed a giggle, seeing the frenzied look in the blonde womanâs eyes. âI- Iâm sorry, that was cruel. I just needed to blow off a little steam from this crazy day and thought it would be a good laugh for us.â
âWhat⊠what was that? Who is Alexa, and why is she invisible?â Elsa swiveled her head repeatedly, looking for the invisible intruder, her hands out to her sides as if waiting for an invisible attacker to appear.
Anna stood up and walked to the tiny fabric speaker on the bookshelf. âThis is Alexa. Itâs a smart home device that controls stuff around our apartment like the lights, temperature, music, and so on. ItâsâŠâ Anna struggled to remember what sheâd learned in history class. âItâs like a butler, except that itâs all online now.â
âOnâŠline?â
âI tell you what. Itâs getting late and we didnât really finish dinner - which I totally admit is my fault - so why donât I explain it to you as best as I can while we order a pizza?â
Elsa blinked. âWhatâs a pizza?â
âSo these black mirrors you have everywhere are all⊠windows of sorts that have electricity and computers inside them?â Elsa asked, taking a small bite of her third slice of pizza as Anna finished explaining more of the modern world.
âYep. And they provide endless entertainment and knowledge. Like, for example, I was searching for when pizza came to Norway, and from your point of view, it wonât arrive for another 127 years. But apparently you have a dish very much like it called brauddiskar,â Anna said, taking a swig of her Sam Adams beer as she relaxed on the couch.
Elsa smiled softly. âNot⊠quite. Brauddiskar is much less oily than this and usually has fish and eggs on top of it, and certainly not this much cheese. However,â she took another bite, âI will grant you this is much more delicious. A little smoked salmon would make this perfect.â
Anna wrinkled her nose. âYou really are a totally different person. My Elsa would never in a million years put fish on her pizza.â
While theyâd been eating, Anna had, out of pure habit, scooted closer and closer to Elsa on the couch. As she finished off her own slice of pizza, Anna flopped against Elsa, leaning her head on the blondeâs shoulder. âI am so stuffed,â she giggled. âI think I need to go walk this off. Want to come along?â
âA walk would be lovely.â Elsaâs eyes unfocused as she reminisced. After meals, she and Anna would often walk the halls or grounds of the castle, holding hands, occasionally listening to Olaf ramble, as they watched the citizens of Arendelle go about their business. The palaceâs walkways offered easy views to the entire city around them, and theyâd giggle over the latest gossip circulating.
Anna struggled to her feet before lifting Elsa from the couch, walked to the front door, and put her sneakers on. Elsa followed suit, and they walked out of the brick apartment building along the darkened street. Old trees lined the avenue, along with modern LED lamps housed in old gas lantern glass casings to give the walk a more stately feel.
Without thinking, Elsa clasped Annaâs hand in her own, eliciting a gentle sigh of relief from the redhead. âThis is such a magical world, truly. Lights that need no oil, carriages without horses, invisible butlers and helpers.â They walked up the block, passing brownstone apartments and little corner shop stores, neon-like signs advertising specials and lottery tickets.
Anna let out a contented sigh. âItâs been a little while since weâve just gone on a walk together, hon- Elsa. My Elsa and I would do this a lot, sometimes even go out to one of the local bars. We⊠weâve not done it much lately.â
âWhy is that, Anna? I canât imagine someone not wanting to spend every minute with you,â Elsa murmured as she rubbed Annaâs knuckles with her thumb. Though sheâd never thought of her own sister romantically, this Anna wasnât so different from her sister in all the ways that mattered, and sheâd been enjoying these quiet moments away from palace life.
Anna paused, lifted their clasped hands, and kissed the back of Elsaâs hand, making the girl blush slightly and take in a sharp breath. âI donât know. You - sheâs been so busy with the law firm, lots of late nights and long hours. Weâre really trying to get her to partner in the firm. Once sheâs done that, she said we can start thinking about kids.â
Elsa frowned, scratching her head. âIâm sure thereâs a modern answer to this, but how would that work? Youâre both⊠women.â
âHa! Thatâs an area where science has definitely changed. Weâd either do a medical procedure to implant a fertilized egg inside one of us, or adopt, or ⊠well, there are a lot of options. Theyâre just all very expensive options. Once Elsaâs a partner at the firm, weâll be in a much better position financially to have kids,â Anna described as she stared up at the night sky, the city lights masking many of the stars. A tear trickled its way down her cheek. âIâŠâ she sniffled, âI just wish it would go faster. Neither of us is getting any younger.â
It was Elsaâs turn to pause while they walked, gently rubbing a thumb over Annaâs cheek to wipe her tear away. âIâm sorry, Anna. Itâs clearly important to you.â
Anna sniffled again as she resumed walking, enjoying the coolness of Elsaâs hand. âItâs⊠itâs okay. I understand why you - my Elsa, I mean. Gosh, this is so confusing. Anyway, I understand why she wanted to wait.â She released a breath she didnât know she was holding. âTelling you - even though youâre not her - makes me feel so much better. I know that when⊠whatever this is⊠is over, Iâll still need to tell her for real, but itâs⊠itâs nice being able to share how I feel with you too, Elsa.â
âI know how you feel,â Elsa murmured, her hand rubbing small circles on Annaâs lower back. âYouâre not my Anna, but youâre so close to her that in all the ways that matter, youâre the same person.â She leaned over and gave Anna a quick, chaste peck on the cheek before taking her hand again.
As they turned around and headed back for their apartment, an idea struck Elsa. âAnna, could you use your⊠smartphone? ⊠to look something up for me?â A nod encouraged her to give voice to the thought she had. âCan you look up what happened to the kingdom of Arendelle?â
Anna came to a halt in the middle of the sidewalk, reaching out and clasping Elsaâs arms. âAre⊠are you sure you want to know the answer, Elsa? Iâve seen enough movies about time travel to know that sometimes, youâre better off not knowing.â
With a silent nod, Anna unlocked her phone and searched for it. âWell⊠I know thereâs a city in Norway named Arendal, but no record of a kingdom of Arendelle that I can find right now. I might have to look on my laptop when we get home.â
âThank you for trying. I wonder what happened. We arenât a large kingdom, but weâre prosperous and peaceful.â
Anna cast her eyes downward before putting a hand gently on Elsaâs shoulder. âIâm sure Iâm not telling you anything you donât know, seeing as how youâre a monarch and all - which still blows my mind, by the way - but prosperous and peaceful nations didnât tend to stay unconquered, particularly in Europe back then. â
Elsa swallowed. âYes, but no one would dare attack us. We hadâŠâ she paused to think about how to word her thoughts, since she hadnât confessed the existence of her powers to this Anna. She looked away, staring across the street, watching one of the light rail trains go by. âI commanded some unique defensive capabilities back then.â
âYes, but where are you now, Elsa?â
Annaâs train of thought caught up to Elsa and her stomach felt sick, bile rising in her throat. âIâm here⊠which means Iâm not there to protect my kingdom. I must have⊠disappeared and my kingdom fell. Oh, God, Anna!â She nearly fell over as her knees weakened.
Anna pulled her into a hug. âItâs okay, Elsa. Weâll figure this out-â
âNo, no, you donât understand. Anna - my Anna! What happened to her? What if she was killed because I vanished and our kingdom fell to one of our enemies?â Elsa lamented, tearing up, holding tightly to Anna. âWhat if my sister died because of me, because I wasnât there to protect her?â
âI donât mean to⊠I- this is going to sound insensitive, but 177 years later, you would both be gone anyway. People back then didnât live for nearly as long as now.â Anna slowly rubbed her hands up and down Elsaâs back as she softly spoke. âThat said, I understand wanting to make sure she lived as long and happy a life as possible. I certainly want that with you- I mean, my Elsa.â
Elsa nodded silently, relishing the feeling of Annaâs hands on her back, her warmth. A spark of confusion echoed in the back of her mind, but she pushed it away as she tamped down her emotions, channeling a bit of her magic inside to cool them down. âIâm sure she wants that with you, too.â
The women silently resumed their walk back to the apartment, Anna keeping careful watch during certain blocks. The neighborhood they lived in was an odd patchwork of really wealthy areas combined with really poor areas; college students in temporary housing intermingled with blue blood old money families. She spotted one guy, huddled on a stoop and staring at them intently, and took Elsaâs upper arm gently to urge her homeward a little faster.
After a few more blocks, they were safely back inside their apartment, the sounds of city nightlife picking up outside. Roving bands of singing college students walked by the windows, punctuated by the occasional train or police sirens. Anna closed the heavy velour curtains in the front windows and flopped on the couch, only to see Elsa poke her head out of the bathroom door.
âUmm⊠Anna? I⊠donât know how the bath works. I realize this is ridiculous butâŠâ Elsa said with a sheepish grin, a light blush coloring her cheeks.
âHow⊠do bathtubs work in your time?â Anna stood up and started walking to the bathroom.
Elsa gave a short laugh as she stared at the chrome fixtures. âWell, usually Kai or Gerda draw a bath for us, and we just⊠bathe. Servants would usually carry the water to the bathing room.â
âWell, we donât have servants here, just faucets,â Anna chuckled. âShower or bath?â At Elsaâs blinking stare, she turned the faucet on to shower as a demonstration.
Elsa tentatively reached her hand in and gasped. âItâs⊠itâs so warm! Itâs like a warm rainstorm! Anna, this is amazing.â She immediately began to undress as Annaâs eyes widened, followed by quiet choking sounds.
Annaâs eyes hungrily devoured the sight before her, the woman who looked just like her wife did ten years ago, but with a few notable exceptions. She had body hair everywhere, which Anna assumed was the norm 177 years ago, no tattoos whatsoever, and wasnât wearing any underwear at all. Before her mind could rope the words back into her mouth, she blurted out, âElsa, whereâs your underwear?â
âMy what?â came the voice from inside the shower.
âYour underwear. Did you really go all day without underwear?â
Elsa poked her head out from the shower. âAnna, I donât understand. Whatâs underwear?â
âN-never mind,â Anna muttered, leaving the room quickly, face as red as her hair. She flopped face first on her bed, trying to wrestle her emotions into submission. This Elsa wasnât her wife, thought of her as a sister, and came from a time and place where everyone was a churchgoer. She was, to Annaâs knowledge, as innocent and pure as wind-driven snow. She groaned, flipping over and scrubbing her face with her palms, trying to force away the carnal desires that nearly overwhelmed her when Elsa undressed for her shower.
A short time later, Elsa came out of the bathroom, dressed in her maroon robe, the one sheâd arrived in, hair somehow perfectly dry and braided despite just getting out of the shower. âHow do you do that, Elsa?â Anna asked with the barest hint of frustration rasping in her voice.
âHmm?â
âHave perfect hair after a shower. Iâm pretty sure youâve never heard of a shower cap, so whatâs your secret?â Anna grumbled.
âOh,â Elsa smirked, truly smiling for the first time, the same radiant smile that Anna had fallen in love with as a college freshman. âMagic.â She purred happily as she climbed into bed next to Anna, savoring not only the warmth, but the decadent luxury of modern day sheets.
Minutes after turning off the lights, Elsa felt the bed slowly rock and creak. Though the woman next to her might not be her sister, the mannerisms were the same. She opened her eyes, watching the lights from cars on the street dance on their ceiling. âCanât sleep, Anna?â
Anna snorted. âHow did you know?â
âYou roll around restlessly just the same way as my Anna. Whatâs keeping you awake?â
A long moment passed before Anna rolled over on her side, facing away from Elsa, before whispering, âDo you really not wear underwear?â
Elsa could almost imagine the ticking of the clocks in her palace bedroom, counting the moments before the inevitable happened. Her stomach tightened. Her lips trembled. Her fingers tingled.
And she burst out into raucous laughter. âANNA! What kind of question is that? Of course I donât wear undergarments. I wasnât sure what you were referring to earlier, but I gathered after remembering what I saw in the drawers. No, goodness no. In my time, theyâre incredibly unsanitary and worn all the time only by⊠certain professions. You only wear something like drawers and such during strawberry days.â
Anna coughed quietly. âUh⊠strawberry days?â
âItâs what we call our bleeding,â Elsa whispered, thankful that the room was dark and Anna couldnât see her blushing.
âOh. OH. Oh, thatâs what you call that? Thatâs so much more poetic than what we call it,â Anna giggled. âHere, itâs called your period.â
Elsa wrinkled her nose. âThatâs⊠yes, significantly less poetic. Anyway, sleep well, sis- I mean, Anna.â She threw her arm over Anna, hugging her around the stomach, and curled up next to the redhead.
Annaâs last conscious thought before drifting off to sleep with a smile was the realization that Elsa was probably still not wearing any underwear.
Authorâs Notes
This chapter has an amusing backstory to it. I wasnât sure how bathrooms and such worked in 1840s Norway, and after extensive Googling, I still had no concrete answers. Most of the sources I found online had information dating back to the 1880s or so, but no earlier. So I did what any good fanfic author does, and I emailed the archaeology and history department at the University of Oslo (after Googling the staff) to ask them. After getting bounced around a couple of times, one of the historians said that the University doesnât keep as good a set of records as the Royal Palace does, and recommended I contact the Royal Family of Norwayâs staff.
So I did.
And they were more than kind enough to not only send me an answer, but an entire multi page document of the floor plans and blueprints for the 1840s Royal Palace (long since gone/rebuilt, so not exactly a security risk). And sure enough, the Royal Palace back in the 1840s had no plumbing of any kind. Servants would have carried water for baths and cleaned chamber pots instead.
Also, the bit about underwear is also true, though I didnât need to contact the Royal Family for that. Thereâs a surprising body of work available online about undergarments, menstruation, etc. and âstrawberry daysâ is indeed one of the euphemisms in Scandinavia.
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As always, please review, kudos, comment, like, follow, all that good stuff. I appreciate it.
Chapter 5: Revelations
Summary:
A voice thundered behind Anna. "Leave my sister alone!" echoed off the brick walls.
Chapter Text
Chapter 5: Revelations
Warm. Soft. Pressing. Elsa felt Annaâs lips first brushing over hers, then pressing against her with urgency. Strong, nimble fingertips stroked from her shoulder blades down both sides of her spine, sending shivers in their wake as Annaâs hands descended, diving beneath the waistband. Elsa tilted her head back, leaning it against the refrigerator, and was rewarded with those same soft lips and the tip of Annaâs tongue tracing circles on her throat.
Elsa wove her fingers through Annaâs auburn hair, following the strands like a waterfall over her shoulders, her collarbone, and onto her breasts. As Elsaâs palms caressed the silky, freckled skin, she distantly heard Annaâs breathy voice through her haze of lust, calling her name.
â⊠ElsaâŠâ
She dragged her fingertips over Annaâs ribs, across the flat, taut skin of her belly, and was rewarded with Annaâs cries of her name again.
âElsa!â
Just as she traced the pads of her fingertips over Annaâs hip bones, Annaâs calling became more forceful.
âElsa! Wake up!â
Her ice-blue eyes snapped open, and she found herself staring into Annaâs teal irises as the redhead shook her shoulders. âElsa, wake up! Weâve got to get going soon.â Once Anna was certain Elsa was awake, she tore into her dresser, looking for her outfit for the day.
âGoing⊠where are we going, Anna?â she said, scrubbing the sleep from her eyes and sitting up. Elsa stretched her arms over her head and yawned as she shook off the last remnants of her⊠very confusing dream.
Anna rolled her eyes. âYour followup appointment, remember? They want to make sure no new symptoms have developed, and we have to go, even though you donât have amnesia. Otherwise theyâll pester us AND charge us the co-pay no matter what.â
âAll right, Iâll get ready,â Elsa grumbled good-naturedly, heading for the bathroom. As she closed the door, her dream came back to her, and she gasped, clutching the counter. She dreamt about Anna⊠romantically. No, more than romantically, she dreamed about Anna sexually. Elsa stared in the mirror, looking at the woman staring back at her with a fiery blush on her face.
What is happening to me? Iâve never dreamed of anyone like that, much less my own sister! she chided herself. Was that my sister? Or was that this Anna? Maybe itâs because of how she slammed me against the refrigerator yesterday and kissed me so fiercely. No oneâs ever touched me like that.
Elsa finished getting ready and put on another pair of yoga pants and a t-shirt, once again omitting underwear. She quietly smirked to herself, the omission intentional just to get a rise out of Anna later. That thought stopped her again. Should I feel guilty about my dream and about⊠teasing Anna with something so intimate? I wish my Anna were here so I could talk to her about it.
She met Anna at the door, ready to catch another Uber.
âHey, itâs still pretty chilly out there, Elsa. You might want a coat,â Anna offered, pointing out one of the jackets hanging on clothes pegs near the door.
âOh, itâs okay. The cold never bothered me anyway,â she smiled, putting on shoes.
Anna snorted. âYou are definitely not my Elsa. She gets all cranky if itâs less than 75 out.â
âSeventy-fiveâŠ? Oh, you use the Fahrenheit system here! We use the RĂ©aumur scale, so itâs 19 out,â she smiled at Anna before they headed out the door. Anna shook her head; sheâd never once heard of the RĂ©aumur scale.
Half an hour of traffic later, they arrived back at the urgent care clinic for Elsaâs follow up. While the nurse practitioner ran Elsa through the same battery of tests, Anna sat in the waiting room, contemplating her situation. She knew the nurse wouldnât find anything, because there was nothing to find that was physically wrong with Elsa, except for being in the wrong century and possibly the wrong planet.
Anna stared at the generic, lackluster waiting room furniture, everything beige on beige, her mind wandering as the minutes passed by. Elsaâs knowledge of the world, her ability to interact with complex technology, talking about temperature systems that sounded fictional, everything pointed to her story being completely true. Certainly, someone faking it would slip up here and there, and she hadnât seen any indication of deception at all. Combined with the complete change in preferences from her wifeâs, Anna was almost completely convinced that Elsaâs bizarre time travel story was legitimate.
In turn, that created stomach-churning worry. Where did her wife go? This Elsa was a physically different person, as evidenced by the missing tattoos that her wife had; the snowflake on her back, and a tiny, embossed E+A in a diamond shape on her ankle. Was her wife out there somewhere? Was her wife stuck in a musty old castle in the 1800s? Annaâs mood lurched between laughter and tears, imagining her Elsaâs reactions to absolutely no electricity or Internet on the one hand and how much she would miss Anna on the other hand. Unsure whether to laugh or cry, Anna did both quietly in the waiting room.
âMrs. Beck?â the on-duty nurse practitioner called, a different nurse than the one who saw Elsa on Monday.
âYes?â
âWe finished examining your wife, and for the most part, sheâs totally healthy. Weâre not sure the amnesiaâs going to resolve itself as quickly as weâd hoped-â
Anna interrupted. âWhat do you mean, sheâs healthy for the most part?â
The nurse practitioner pulled up a couple of charts on their tablet. âWell, two minor oddities. First, her body temperature is very much on the low side, about 95F. Thatâs⊠normally, that would be a cause for medical concern, but she doesnât appear impaired by it. Second, we did a few non-invasive tests, and her iodine and vitamin C levels are unusually low. Does she have any known nutrition deficiencies?â
Anna raised an eyebrow. âNo, not that I know of. What would cause those deficiencies? What does that mean for her?â
âIn more severe deficiencies, you can end up with thyroid issues and scurvy, but sheâs not in danger of that yet. She said she doesnât take any multivitamins, so Iâd recommend starting there. That might also aid with the amnesia too, rule out any odd micronutrient deficiencies. Itâs a little puzzling, honestly. We havenât had substantial iodine deficiencies in people for decades,â the nurse said, scratching her head.
Anna coughed. âWell, Iâll make sure she starts taking some multivitamins. Weâll hit up CVS on the way home, thereâs one just around the corner from our apartment.â
âGreat. If you could just sign here⊠and hereâŠâ the nurse practitioner indicated, page after page of authorizations and waivers of liability flashing by on the tablet as Anna grumbled to herself. She looked up as the door slid open, Elsa taking small steps into the general waiting area, giving her a small wave.
âHey ba- Elsa. Weâre all set here,â Anna smiled, taking the womanâs hand. They thanked the nurse practitioner and ran out of the clinic as quickly as possible.
Anna exhaled as they walked up the street. âThat was close.â
âClose?â Elsa turned her head, quirking an eyebrow. âWhat was close?â
âYou have some uncommon nutritional deficiencies in this day and age because of where youâre from, Elsa. Nothing we canât fix with a multivitamin.â Anna savored the feeling of Elsaâs hand in hers, even if her skin was much, much cooler than her wifeâs normally warm, sometimes even clammy hands. âWeâll stop by the store and pick some up.â
Elsa nodded. âThat sounds good. Umm⊠whatâs a multivitamin?â
âAnna?â
âYes?â
âWhatâs wrong with this chocolate?â Elsa chewed slowly on a bit of a candy bar theyâd grabbed at the register as the afternoon sun lit the street in golden light.
Anna stopped walking in the middle of the sidewalk. âLet me see! Chocolate is no laughing matter, you know,â she grinned, taking a bite of the thin bar. âI donât taste anything wrong with it?â She said, handing it back to Elsa as they walked along one of the side streets near their apartment, a more rundown block.
âItâs so sugary and⊠gritty. Chocolate is supposed to be rich and smooth, almost like a sweet butter. At home, we drink our chocolate. This is⊠this is barely chocolate,â Elsa grimaced, swallowing. âThe solid chocolate you brought home the other day - the Sardinian-named one - didnât taste like this. What happened to this poor chocolate?â
Anna gave Elsa a sidelong glance as they walked past apartments with graffiti all over the stoops and trash idly dancing in the light breeze. âYou always were a little snobby about chocolate,â she muttered before playfully bumping her hip into the blondeâs. âWell, my Elsa is, anyway.â
âIâm glad we have that in common. I bet weâd get along famously,â she grinned.
âExcept for the part where she hates the cold and fish of any kind.â
Elsa grinned. âWe both appreciate fine chocolate. The rest is negotiable.â As she reluctantly nibbled on the chocolate bar, she snuck a glance at Anna every other bite. âAnnaâŠâ
âHmm?â
âTell me more about⊠about the other version of me?â she asked, murmuring the latter part of the question into the candy wrapper.
Anna smiled as memories washed over her. âElsa - my Elsa - well, you know sheâs 34, sheâs from Minnesota and in her words, âmoved away from the cold as quickly as she couldâ, though why she picked Boston University still eludes me. I made fun of her for years about that, since itâs not exactly tropical here.â She huffed some air upwards, tossing her bangs lightly as they continued their stroll. âHer familyâs from Norway, from a little-â
Ahead, someone unseen made a muffled noise that almost sounded like a person screaming with a hand over their mouth. Anna was the first to look up, her posture immediately changing, her back straight, her muscles taut. Elsa lifted her hands up in front of her, hovering around her waist, as she heard the sound too.
Down a side alley between buildings, they spotted a ragged-looking man pressing a raven-haired girl against the brick wall, his hand over her mouth to muffle her screams, a knife in his other hand. The girl appeared to be a college student, backpack on the ground next to her, eyes wide with terror.
âStay here, Iâll handle this,â both Elsa and Anna said at exactly the same time. They looked at each other, each with an eyebrow arched. Anna rushed ahead, with Elsa close on her heels as they closed the distance to the assailant. Her voice booming against the alleyâs walls, Anna shouted, âHey asshole! Back the fuck off!â
The grungy-looking attacker, heavily bearded and dirty from head to toe, snarled through broken teeth and red-rimmed eyes at her, releasing the college student and turning to face Anna, knife held out in front of him. As the college girl ran away down the alley, the attacker turned his attention to the redhead. âFine, bitch,â he slurred, âItâll be you instead!â With a scream, he charged at Anna, knife held out like a jousting pole.
Anna widened her feet and braced herself, hands up almost like a boxer. Just as the assailant closed the last few feet of distance, Anna felt a blast of cold air from behind her, like someone had brought a polar vortex from January and dropped it in the alleyway.
A voice thundered behind Anna. âLeave my sister alone!â echoed off the brick walls. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Elsaâs eyes almost glowing bright blue as the woman held out her hands.
Anna blinked, trying to figure out if she was hallucinating or if Elsaâs hands really had snowflakes swirling around them, waves of cold bursting from her body like the winds of a blizzard. In another blink of her eye, what looked like a beam of glowing blue light filled with snow and ice shot from Elsaâs hands. The beam crashed into their assailant, striking him dead center in the chest. His skin began to turn icy blue as vapor coalesced around him, the extreme cold pulling humidity from the air. In another second, his body froze completely, and the momentum from him running toppled his frozen form, shattering into icy shards all over the concrete of the alley floor as though he were glass struck by a hammer.
Annaâs mouth hung open as something snapped in her mind.
The snow and ice vanished from Elsaâs hands as she looked around furtively, realizing what sheâd done, what sheâd revealed. No one else had witnessed the confrontation, so she grabbed Annaâs hand and tugged her forcefully to break her out of the stupor she was in. âCome on, we need to get out of here!â she urged, pulled the stupefied woman out of the alley and down the street.
Moments later, she slammed the front door of their apartment shut, bolting it tight, then sank to the floor, the adrenaline rush wearing off. Anna, still dazed, sank alongside her.
âAnna?â
âWhat⊠howâŠâ the redhead murmured, her eyes unfocused as she hugged her knees to her chest, rocking slowly. âI donât⊠understandâŠâ
Elsa embraced her, drawing Anna in close. âItâs okay, Iâve got you. I wouldnât let him hurt you,â she reassured, slowly rubbing small circles on Annaâs upper back.
As though suddenly awakened from a nightmare, Anna went rigid before pushing Elsa away, her eyes wide with panic, her chest heaving as she scrambled away from her, crawling like a crab along the floor. âWhat are you? Elsa, what the fuck? I know youâre not my wife, and I know youâre not from this time, but what the fuck? How did you- what was that? Are- are you some kind of, I donât know, witch? Or- or an alien? Or are you some kind of sci-fi TV show character brought to life like Killer Frost?â she rambled, her words rushing out as she flailed her arms.
Elsa bowed her head. âI⊠Iâm sorry I didnât tell you about this part. Itâs something that took me years to⊠accept. Itâs only been the last couple of years that I could even face you - face my Anna - as what I really am.â She hugged her stomach, curling up a little on the floor. âI donât know what I am. All I know is I have these⊠powers⊠magic. And most of the time I keep them hidden, but I couldnât. I couldnât watch you get hurt, Anna.â
Anna slowly caught her breath. âI- wow. I donât know what to say. What- how does it work?â
âIâm honestly not sure. I was born this way,â Elsa shrugged, holding out her hands in front of her. âFrom when I was very little, I had these⊠abilities with cold. Anna - my Anna - loved to play with me, and weâd use my powers for that. Iâd make villages and castles and forests out of snow, any time of year.â She smiled wistfully, her eyes tearing up at the memories.
âSo itâs not like you were sent from another planet in an alien ship or hit by an exploding particle accelerator or got bitten by a radioactive spider or anythingâŠâ
Elsaâs confusion was written all over her face, her lips parted as if to speak but no words were forthcoming.
âNever mind, those are all fictional references. So⊠youâre not only the queen of a country, but a superhero too?â
âI wouldnât say a hero, no. I have magical abilities but I try not to use them, at least not around people I donât know,â Elsa shrugged, letting go of her knees and stretching out on the floor.
âHave you ever thought about being a superhero?â
Elsa sighed. âNo. And hereâs whyâŠâ
Over the next hour, she described her accidentally hurting Anna, her tears of isolation, disastrous coronation, the coup attempts by Weselton and Hans, her ice palace, and almost losing her Anna. âSo you see, I am profoundly unqualified to be a hero of any kind. I almost killed the only person who ever loved me with these powers, and I barely trust myself even today. The only reason I revealed them today was because I couldnât let that man hurt my sis- hurt you.â
Anna nodded solemnly. Her wife was a generous, caring person, and if sheâd had these kinds of powers, sheâd definitely be out in the world using them. But her wife had never had such intense trauma like this Elsa, being cut off from most human interaction for so many years. Her story explained why this Elsa seemed to pull away from touch, too. Anna had thought Elsaâs hesitance was simply the weirdness of finding out youâre married to your sister, but knowing you could accidentally freeze someone to death with a touch⊠she shook her head wordlessly at the thought, the mental image of the guy in the alley shattering like glass. Did her years of trauma turn this Elsa into a cold-blooded killer?
âThatâs why you donât feel⊠upset? Guilty? About what happened to that guy?â she asked haltingly.
Elsa shook her head. âI almost lost you - Anna - once, and I swore to myself no matter what happened, no matter what life brought, I would never, ever allow that to happen again. He left me no choice, because I will always choose you first.â
âAww, thatâs so rom- um⊠thatâs so sweet, Elsa,â she stumbled, catching herself.
âItâs okay, Anna. I know you meant to say romantic, because you still see your Elsa here sometimes, just like I still see my Anna in you, like in the alley,â she gave Anna a smile.
Anna exhaled, stood up, and waddled over to the kitchen area as feeling rushed back into her legs after sitting on the floor for so long. âHey⊠want a glass of wine?â she asked as she pulled out a bottle of moscato and two stemless wine glasses.
Elsa nodded, pulling herself to her feet. âIâd love one. Possibly more than one after the day weâre having.â She accepted the wine glass, looking at it curiously, then sniffing it as they both leaned against the counter. âAnna⊠what is this?â
Anna gave a small smirk. âThe glass or the wine?â
âBoth?â Elsa asked, holding the glass at an angle as the effervescent bubbles rose from the wine. âIâve never seen wine glasses like this before, and this wine looks like a champagne, but definitely doesnât smell like it.â
âStemless wine glasses are made for clumsier people like me who knock over regular wine glasses a lot,â Anna said with a giggle, taking a sip of her moscato, âand this is moscato, which everyone knows⊠except⊠ah. Alexa, when was moscato invented?â
The disembodied smart assistant sparked to life again, startling Elsa and causing her to splash a bit of wine from her glass. âMoscato was invented in 1870 in the Piedmont region of Italy. Would you like more information?â it pleasantly asked.
âNo thanks!â Anna turned her attention back to Elsa. âSo yeah⊠you wonât have moscato again for another 30 or so years from your time.â A sudden thought smacked Anna upside the head, the realization that with life expectancies so short in the 1800s, Elsa might not even live to see moscato invented. She shivered at the prospect of having so short a life.
âSo,â Elsa cleared her throat as she moved to the living room, sitting on the couch. âBefore the⊠umm, incident, you were telling me about your Elsaâs family?â
Anna joined her, sprawling out on one side and taking another sip of wine. âOh, yeah! Thatâs right. So my Elsaâs family came from Norway, I think Oslo. Her dad always mentions some brewery in the city, Ringnes. They came here in the 70s as kids, her mom and dad, and ended up getting married and having Elsa in the late 80s. You can tell theyâre from Norway because of their names-â
âAgnar and Iduna?â
âThatâs right! Howâd you know that?â
âThose were our - my parentsâ names,â Elsa sighed, looking down at her hands and the wine glass in them. âThey.. they died five years ago now, when I was 18. But I was still⊠locked away, so my Anna had to deal with their loss all by herself.â Tears welled up in her eyes. âI was so terrible to you - to her, excuse me - and the last couple of years, Iâve been trying so hard to make up for it, for all the years I was locked away.â
She looked up suddenly, eyes wide. âAre⊠are your Elsaâs parents still alive?â
Anna nodded with a small smile. âAs far as I know, we had dinner with them last month.â She pulled out her phone and swiped through the camera roll a few times, then held it up so Elsa could see. Around the table at a local tapas restaurant were Anna and Elsa, with Iduna and Agnar seated on either side of them, smiling. Agnar had a ridiculously oversized sombrero on, apparently the man of honor with a candle-lit birthday cake in front of him.
Elsa choked back a sob as she held the phone delicately in her hands as though it were a holy book. âThey⊠they look so old and so happy, Anna. Look at Papa, his hairâs gone totally grey, and Mama⊠Mama still looks so beautiful, just like I remember her.â
âIf⊠if you want, I could call them. You could talk to them? I mean, I know theyâre not your parents, not the ones you lost, but⊠maybe it might be something?â Anna offered, taking Elsaâs trembling hand in hers.
âNo! No, Anna, I- I couldnât. Theyâd know it wasnât really your Elsa in moments, and I wouldnât⊠I wouldnât want to worry them. Thank you, though. I⊠do you have any more images of them? Maybe that would be enough, just to see them a little more,â she breathed, handing Annaâs phone back to her.
Anna took her phone back and swiped through a couple more screens, then looked up. âActually, all the really good stuff should be on your phone! Do you have it on you?â
âNo?â Elsa answered, confused. Sheâd not known her other self had one of these magical black mirrors. âHow would I have had one?â
Anna sprung up from the couch with a giggle. âThen itâs probably in the same place you always keep it. I mean - oh, you know what I mean!â She made her way to the bedroom, Elsa following behind her. On the nightstand, in a stylish aluminum enclosure, was a fully-charged iPhone 12 in a blue and white snowflake case, accompanied by an equally snow-themed solar-powered battery pack.
âFor someone who didnât like the cold, a lot of her stuff is snowflake-themed. You mentioned she had a tattoo of a snowflake, too?â
Anna nodded. âYeah, she just loves the beauty of them, the geometry, the uniqueness.â She smiled, thinking back to the early years of their dating, and how sheâd made fun of Elsa for exactly the same observations her doppelganger was making now. Theyâd both weathered Bostonâs damp winters more easily than many of their peers, being from the cold Midwest.
The phoneâs lock screen lit up, a picture of Anna making a goofy face with baby carrots stuck in her teeth like vampire fangs. Elsa nearly dropped the phone as she burst into laughter. She lightly tapped the screen, triggering the password prompt, considered it for a moment as she tapped her index finger on her lips, and slowly spelled out A-N-N-A with a wry grin. The lock screen opened, showing rows and rows of Elsaâs apps - Blackâs Law Dictionary, Kiwix (an offline version of Wikipedia), and dozens of others the lawyer used in her job. âAll right, Anna, youâre going to have to show me how to use this particular magical device, since itâs definitely not my kind of magic,â she smirked.
Elsa lay on the couch, Anna having gone to bed an hour earlier after teaching her how modern smartphones worked, as she scrolled through photos of this Elsaâs life and times, especially of her parents. Dried tears left tracks on her cheeks and on the collar of her hoodie, from laughter and sadness alike, as a pile of used tissues grew beside her. She saw the parents she might have had if Agnar and Iduna hadnât perished at sea. Certainly, these versions of her parents were much less formal than hers, and in a different century, but their smiles and warmth was unmistakably the same.
After a few more pages, she looked down at the tiny text along the bottom of the screen, scratching her head. What does âvideosâ mean? she wondered, before touching the unfamiliar word. The screen shifted to a huge collection of little photos with triangles overlaid on them, and she touched one of Agnar and Iduna close together. The photo sprang to life, and Elsa stared in shock, a high-pitched cry forming in her throat as she trembled.
âHi Elsa! Mama and I just wanted to wish you a very happy 34th birthday,â Agnar grinned, wearing a ridiculous red cone-shaped hat. âWeâll be in town in a couple of days to celebrate, but we didnât want to miss the day-â he said before turning his camera to the side to focus on Iduna. âElsa, my baby, we miss you so much and canât wait to see you soon. We love you!â She blew a kiss to the camera, and the video came to an end.
Elsaâs cheeks were no longer dry, and would not be for the rest of the night.
Authorâs Notes
This chapter presented SO many anachronisms the first time I wrote it. I had no idea Norway didnât use the metric system until 1875, and I didnât even know the RĂ©aumur system existed at all. Crazy.
Join The Party
Enjoyed this story? Want to meet fellow readers and discuss? Join the Elsanna Shenanigans community on Discord at discord.gg/TU9NpnH (copy and paste that URL for AO3 friends, go to discord dot gg slash TU9NpnH for FFN friends).
As always, please review, kudos, comment, like, follow, all that good stuff. I appreciate it.
Chapter 6: Working at Love
Summary:
"Kinda. You ever... you ever wake up one day and the person next to you is like... a totally different person?" Anna asked quietly, leaning on the cubicle's divider wall.
Chapter Text
Chapter 6: Working At Love
Elsa awoke in the early morning light to find Annaâs arms around her, hugging her from behind. More specifically, she felt not only Annaâs arms around her, but Annaâs palms cupping her breasts. Gingerly, she nudged Annaâs hands lower until they were resting on her ribs instead as she breathed a sigh of relief.
Relief soon became⊠well, she wasnât sure what it became, but her nipples were still aroused, and she felt heat pooling in her belly. Should I have moved her hands? she asked herself, unsure what she was feeling. On the one hand, she felt nothing but familial love for her sister. On the other hand, this wasnât her sister, not here. She wondered what it would be like to indulge the sensation just a little more. Her opportunities for any kind of intimacy in her time were non-existent; those few suitors even interested in her because of her station were terrified of her powers, and she herself had been made to fear touching others after the accident with Anna as a child and her subsequent isolation.
Her wondering was cut short by Anna shifting her hands back into place on her breasts. Elsa felt a shiver run up her spine, closed her eyes, and let herself feel it. Is this so bad, to let her enjoy a few moments in her dreams, with her wife? I can tolerate this. This isnât Arendelle, and Iâm not the head of the church here⊠I shouldnât, but I even enjoy this just a little.
âMmm baby, I wish we had more timeâŠâ Anna murmured, rubbing small circles with her fingertips, relishing the sensation of her wifeâs soft, firm skin. âWe donât do this nearly as much as we used toâŠâ Wakefulness slowly dawned on Anna, and her hands froze in place as she realized what she was doing to the woman next to her. Oh god, I hope sheâs not awake! She must think this is so sick, her sister fondling her like this!
Both women quietly coughed and apologized simultaneously. âI, uh, Iâm sorry, Anna, I didnât mean to wake you.â
âNo, no, itâs okay. Iâm really sorry, I thought you were my wife and⊠Iâm sorry. That- itâs- wow, this is really awkward,â Anna blushed fiercely, her hands burning as she wrung them tightly to her own bare chest. âYou must be horrified.â
Elsa turned over in the bed and gently cupped Annaâs cheek with her palm, a soft smile on her lips. âItâs okay, Anna. I- itâs not fair to you that the woman you love isnât here right now. Iâm a poor substitute, even if I am her in other ways. I canât fault you for mistaking me for her in your sleep.â She put a finger preemptively on Annaâs lips. âAnd before you say it, no, you will not sleep on your couch.â
Anna let out a long sigh of relief and a short laugh. âThank you, Elsa. That⊠that makes me feel better. I⊠in this time period, touching without consent is not okay.â
âTo be fair, someone touching the reigning monarch without permission in my time is risking life and limb too,â Elsa giggled, laying back with her arms behind her head. âLast year, at a ball, a very drunk ambassador from Bavaria attempted to place his hand somewhere it shouldnât have been, and I froze his coat sleeve solid, as though it were a cast for a broken arm.â
âOh my god, what did he do?â
âHe was confused, and then I whispered in his ear that the next time he behaved in such an uncivilized manner, I would freeze the entire arm. Then I had my guards escort him to his quarters to sober up,â Elsa smiled, remembering the awful ball. She thanked her lucky stars that she was able to handle the situation before the buffoon had a chance to meet her sister.
Anna mirrored Elsaâs pose, laying back on her arms. âWow. I canât imagine what thatâs like, having guards and servants and stuff. It must be amazing.â Anna gleefully imagined having someone taking care of all the mundane things that she struggled with every day - paying bills, cooking, cleaning - and how awesome it would be for someone else to just do all of it.
âItâs convenient, to be sure, but there are downsides. For example, youâre rarely alone, and youâre always being watched. Every wall has eyes and ears.â
âI think I could live with that if it meant never having to dust again,â Anna chuckled. âMy Elsa isnât too fond of housework. We still split the chores, butâŠâ Anna turned her head to look away for a moment, a tiny laugh in her chest. Once, theyâd had a fight about mopping the floors, and Anna had accused her then-fiancee of acting like a queen. If only sheâd known how true that was. Her chest tightened as laughter turned to heartache, missing her wife once more.
âIâm afraid I will be of little help until you teach me how, Anna,â the blonde said softly, interrupting Annaâs reverie. âIâve honestly never done any of that kind of work in my life, though Iâve certainly seen the staff doing it on our behalf.â She turned to look at Anna, catching the sadness in her eyes, and propped herself up on one elbow. âWhat is it?â
Annaâs eyes glistened. âI miss her. You. My Elsa. I know itâs only been a few days, butâŠâ
âItâs not the same.â
Anna nodded, wiping a tear from her eye. âNo, it isnât. And⊠thatâs not to say youâre not a wonderful person, and so much like her, but⊠yeah. I⊠what if she doesnât come back?â
Elsa sighed. âWeâll figure this out somehow, Anna. Some way for you to get her back, and get me back to where I belong, with my Anna and my time.â She rolled over and slung an arm around Annaâs midsection, pulling her into a hug and feeling the crook of her neck dampen with Annaâs falling tears.
After a long pause, Anna took a deep breath, exhaled, and slowly sat up, the sheet falling from her naked body as a pink blush appeared on Elsaâs cheeks. âSo⊠todayâs the day, huh?â
âHmm?â Elsa said, confused, tearing her eyes away.
âItâs Wednesday, hon- Elsa. You have to go back to work today and at least explain things so that you can qualify for short-term disability,â Anna said, putting her clothes on. After sheâd tossed on a flannel shirt, jeans, and a hoodie, she turned to Elsa. âWhat do you normally wear to⊠uh, work? In your time, I mean.â
Elsa smiled. âProbably something that wonât go over well here.â She shrugged off her maroon night robe, briefly revealing her pale body before a stunning, ice-blue dress materialized, a long, flowing cape sparkling behind her.
Anna stared open-mouthed as the dress formed from snow and ice crystals swirling around her, the slightest bit of saliva dripping from one corner of her mouth. âWhoa. That⊠thatâs seriously the most amazing thing Iâve ever seen, Elsa. But⊠yeah, that style isnât quite up to date here.â
âWhat does your Elsa normally wear to work?â
Anna dug out a white button-down shirt, black blazer, and black twill trousers, with white pointed-toe pumps, and laid the outfit down on the bed. âThis is usually your go-to, especially on meeting days.â
Elsa picked up each of the garments, turned them around, inspected them carefully, then smiled, stepped back, and with a wave of her fingers, channeled her magic to imitate the outfit on the bed, making only small cosmetic changes. After her ice blue dress had reformed as a navy blue power suit, she added small crystal earrings and a clear crystal necklace. âHowâs this?â
âThat⊠you look amazing, Elsa. Like⊠like my Elsa, but with a twist. Can⊠can I?â she asked, her fingers already halfway to Elsaâs jacket before the blonde nodded. âItâs⊠itâs cool, but not cold to the touch. Thatâs⊠wow, thatâs legit magical,â she murmured, the tips of her fingers lingering on Elsaâs forearm. âIs it still ice?â
Elsa nodded. âIt is. Iâve experimented over the years with different shapes; ice can be shaped to take almost any shape and feel.â
âHow- how does that work?â
âHonestly, Iâm still not sure. I just⊠think about it, and it does whatever it is Iâm thinking or feeling. That,â she chuckled, looking down at her hands briefly, âhas gotten me into plenty of trouble over the years.â
âThe eternal winter you told me about.â
âYes, that. That and plenty of other things. I missed a fair number of meals growing up because I was so heartbroken that the door to my chambers was frozen shut. I didnât know how to control my powers back then. I should have realized that it was love which thawed; every time my Anna came by to talk, she would help me feel better and the ice would fade away.â She rolled her eyes at her own obliviousness.
Anna fidgeted, her throat bobbing as though there were words literally fighting to get out of her mouth and she was imprisoning them - badly.
âAnd yesterday?â she finally blurted out.
âWhat about- oh, you mean in the alley. My powers are strongest when Iâm⊠I guess you would say aligned? When what Iâm thinking and Iâm feeling are in harmony, when I know exactly what I want.â She thought back to the many times sheâd visited the town square in Arendelle, delighting the children by crafting toys out of ice and snow. It brought her as much delight as it did the kids, and the toys got more ornate with very little added effort.
Her thoughts turned to the brute that they encountered in the alley. She had instinctively reached out to protect Anna, unquestionably. She reflected for a moment; it wasnât fear she felt. Fear made her powers fly out of control, creating chaos in their wake. When she stopped the attacker - when she disintegrated him utterly - she was far from afraid.
âYesterday, I was⊠focused. In harmony. I knew I needed to stop him from hurting you, and I⊠I felt such anger, that someone would dare attack my sister. I know, I know, youâre not my sister, but at that moment, I forgot.â
âWhat⊠what did you think about?â
âI imagined him crumbling to dust, shattering into a million little pieces, and I reached out my hands-â
Anna gulped. â-and thatâs exactly what happened. Wow, Elsa. Thatâs⊠thatâs still mind-blowing. This whole thing is, but that especially⊠there was nothing left of him, not even his knife.â She nervously chuckled. âAt least we wonât have to worry about the police finding the body, I guess?â
âUm⊠I donât know if thatâs a good thing or not, Anna. All I know is that no one attacks my sister, or attacks you by extension, I suppose. Not while Iâm around to do something about it,â she declared, her jaw muscles firm and tight.
Anna stepped back for a moment, took another deep breath as she regarded her wifeâs doppelganger with affection, then embraced her. âWell⊠good luck today, Elsa.â
Elsa smiled and pecked her on the cheek, then headed for the front door of their apartment. âYou too, Anna. Iâll let you know what happens.â
âRemember to text me. You remember how to do that, right?â
âI do, yes. Iâm starting to get the hang of these little magical black mirrors,â she grinned as they walked out the door to the light rail station.
Anna spun her cubicle chair around in a circle, chewing on the end of a pencil as she watched the office spin past her eyes. After leaving for work, sheâd stopped by the Starbucks in her building, grabbed a quadruple shot espresso, and tried to focus on the mounting pile of work in her inbox. But a few hours later, the caffeine boost had worn off, lunch sat heavily in her stomach, and she tried to push her worries away.
Her worries had other ideas for her day.
What if Elsa isnât able to convince her law firm to put her on leave?
What if this is permanent?
What if my wife never returns?
Can I love this Elsa as much as my own?
Will she ever love me the way my wife did?
Something nagged at her consciousness, poking her like a splinter she couldnât find.
Would that be so bad, if this were permanent?
She worried at her lip, continuing to idly spin her chair until something lightly tapped her on the side of the head.
âBeck!â
Anna turned to face the woman in the next cubicle over with a grimace and a barely-managed fake smile. âWhatâs up, Janine?â
The younger, dirty blonde woman, one of her team members, stopped just as she was about to throw another paper airplane at Anna. âYouâve been spaced out for like, half an hour, boss. Weâve got a staff meeting soon! You okay?â
âYeah, just a lot on my mind⊠home stuff, you know?â
Janine nodded as she gathered up a folder full of drawings off her desk. âTotally. Trouble with the missus?â
âKinda. You ever⊠you ever wake up one day and the person next to you is like⊠a totally different person?â Anna asked quietly, leaning on the cubicleâs divider wall.
âOh yeah, totally,â her coworker said. âMy last boyfriend was like, fucking Jekyll and Hyde, I swear to god. Some days heâd be so sweet, and other days heâd be a complete asshole from like, a 1970s sitcom.â
Anna rubbed the back of her neck. âWhatâd you do about it?â
Janine burst out laughing. âI dumped his ass and found someone who didnât have the complete asshole part. Why, is your wife being an asshole to you?â
âNo! No, definitely not. Sheâs just⊠different lately, thatâs all. And not a bad different, just⊠not the woman I married, and Iâm not sure if⊠if itâs going to stay that way,â she said, the corners of her mouth turning down as her lower lip trembled.
Janine strode over from her desk and put a hand on Annaâs shoulder. âDo you still love her, even if sheâs different?â
Without speaking, Anna placed a hand on top of Janineâs and nodded.
âDoes she still love you?â
Anna looked up at Janine, nodding again.
âThen whatever it is, youâll make it work. My ex didnât love anyone except himself, so there was no fucking way it was going to work, you know what I mean?â She grabbed the file folder off her desk. âNow come on, we gotta get to Conference Room C and wow the shit out of these dummies from Weselton Corporation.â
Anna grabbed her tablet and phone with one hand, wiping the tears that had threatened to fall with the other, and followed her coworker to the conference rooms. âThanks, Janine,â she stage-whispered as they entered.
Authorâs Notes
A brief, fluffy interlude before we get to see how Elsa handles a job in the 21st century, plus some more consequences from the previous dayâs adventures. Stay tuned as we see what kind of lawyer the Queen of Arendelle makes.
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Chapter 7: The Queen's Law
Summary:
With a deep breath, she shrugged and walked into the conference room...
... and fought with every ounce of her soul to not freeze the lone occupant solid. "Hans!" she hissed, glaring daggers at him, her hands hovering in front of her.
Chapter Text
Chapter 7: The Queenâs Law
Elsa walked in the door of Klein & Gabler, a prestigious law firm on the 34th floor of the Prudential Center tower, to be greeted by the beautiful Italian marble lobby, replete with mahogany furniture and gold-trimmed⊠everything. The firm was beyond wealthy; its only serious competition was rival firm Wolfram & Hart. Sheâd spent much of the previous day sifting through the electronic messages on her phone and tablet, trying to understand whoâs who in the modern Elsaâs life and work. After half a day of research and connecting the dots, she knew at least enough to work out the basics of who she needed to talk to.
âMs. Beck!â A young, slender, raven-haired Chinese woman near the front desk practically shouted as she shot out of her chair. âWe thought you got hit by a bus or something. What happened?â
âOh, um, good morning,â Elsa smiled, cringing slightly at the intensity of the womanâs gaze. âMy physicians arenât sure what exactly happened but⊠Iâve had some severe memory loss. Is Mr. MacDonald in?â
âHeâs in a meeting but should be available in a few minutes. Want me to come get you when he is?â
Elsa nodded. âYes please. Umm, where should I wait?â she asked, looking at the rich Italian leather couches in the lobby area, the wall behind them littered with trophies and awards for the firm.
The woman cocked her head, something Elsa found quite cute, especially as she was very sharply dressed for someone so apparently young. âAt your desk?â
âMy⊠desk. I- Iâm afraid I donât remember. Can you point me in the right direction, maâam?â she asked, turning her head slowly to see a large open work area with a dozen long workbenches, computers and phones everywhere, and dozens of young workers milling about under harsh, sterile fluorescent light.
âWow, you really donât remember anything?â The woman stepped out from behind the mahogany desk. âCome on, follow me. I guess you donât remember my name, either?â
Elsa shook her head. âIâm⊠very sorry.â
âMagnolia. We just started working together.â She walked Elsa to her desk; instead of being one of the sterile workbenches that the junior staff used, Elsa had a small interior office reserved for non-equity partners. The equity partners, of course, had the outer wall offices with the stunning views of the city skyline, and the senior partners had the corner offices.
âThank you, Magnolia. I⊠is it all right if I ask you for help, while I navigate my⊠medical issues?â she asked, clasping her hands tightly behind her back to avoid appearing nervous. She recalled many of the names in her email, but Magnolia was not one she remembered from her research.
Magnolia chuckled. âUh, yeah! I mean, I have to do what you say anyway, since I work for you. Iâm your summer law clerk. Also, you usually call me Maggie.â
âGreat,â she sighed with relief, looking around the small office. On the mahogany desk was a framed picture of Anna, wearing a hooded sweatshirt and standing next to a statue, her hand in an unfamiliar gesture with two fingers pointed up. Next to the desk was some sort of potted tree, and very little else gave her any indication of what her doppelganger was like. Elsa wondered just what kind of person her alter-ego was; after sheâd opened the gates to the palace, she and Anna had gone on a decorating spree, putting up family portraits, pulling art out storage, doing everything to make the palace feel like home again. This Elsaâs office looked so bare that one could be forgiven for thinking it was an empty desk.
âCan⊠can I ask what happened?â Maggie tendered, hesitating. Elsa smiled, gestured for her to sit down in one of the chairs, and recounted the last few days of her official story and amnesia for a quarter hour as Magnolia listened with rapt attention.
âWow. Thatâs intense. So you really donât remember anything at all?â
âNot a thing. Thatâs why Iâve come in to talk to Mr. MacDonald; since I literally cannot remember how to do my job, I need to file for short-term disability.â Sheâd read up on the basics of disability law, and with the urgent care clinicâs diagnosis, she had enough proof for it.
A flurry of activity outside her office caught her attention, and just as Elsa stood up to close the door, a man in a refined Italian suit charged in, pressing a leather-covered folio against his chest like a shield. She appraised him quickly; probably close to Annaâs age, athletic, with intense pale blue eyes and slicked back hair. She stood to address him. âGood morn-â
âElsa! Thank God youâre back. Listen, we donât have much time.â He beckoned for her to follow him as he speed-walked across the office, Maggie chasing behind them with an armful of folders. âJay from SITC is in The Pit, and that douchebag from Weselton Corp is on his way over. We need to get this settlement done today, because otherwise we risk going to trial. Kris fucked up the filing, so I need you to keep Jay from losing his shit. We canât afford to lose them as a client right now, and heâs right on the edge of dropping us. If this goes to trial, weâre probably fucked.â Their power-walk across the floor brought them to a glass-enclosed conference room with âThe Pitâ artfully inscribed on a small brass label adhered to the door.
âJust keep him happy while I get that asshole from Weselton and bring him up, okay?â the man said, dashing off while Elsa looked at Maggie, wide-eyed. With a deep breath, she shrugged and walked into the conference roomâŠ
⊠and fought with every ounce of her soul to not freeze the lone occupant solid. âHans!â she hissed, glaring daggers at him, her hands hovering in front of her.
The red-headed man sitting in one of the leather chairs turned abruptly. âWhat the fuck?â He stood up abruptly, nearly knocking over his chair. âNo one calls me that! Not you, not Lindsey, not even your precious Senior Partners. I donât care what youâve been digging up on me - and donât think I havenât noticed - but that name is off-limits!â he shouted, instantly red in the face.
Elsa blinked. Of course, in this world, Hans would be different. Here, he was some kind of businessman instead of the thirteenth son of a royal crown. She noted, barely able to control her smirk, that he lacked his usual sideburns. She sat down at the end of the table, Maggie taking a seat to her right. âSorry. Jay, is it?â she said without an ounce of emotion in her voice, gesturing at his chair.
He returned her glare before pulling his chair back under him and easing himself into it, his anger draining away to a resigned scowl. âSorry. I⊠havenât heard that name in a while. Nothing good associated with it. How did you even find it? I hired a private investigator who told me he buried everything there ever was about⊠that name.â
âI⊠it probably came up in a filing somewhere, Iâm sure. Now,â she coughed discreetly, âJay, what seems to be the problem with the⊠settlement?â
Maggie slid a folder of papers in front of Elsa, silently praying that whatever was wrong with her boss could be covered up. Elsa was the only person sheâd interviewed with at all the big area law firms that would even consider her as a law clerk despite her stellar academic record. Her friends in law school had suggested over drinks one evening that the problem wasnât her academic record as much as it was her not looking like the typical law associate. If Elsa got canned, she had no doubt her clerkship would be terminated immediately after.
âYou know what the problem is, Ms. Beck. That bastard Weselton wants 22% as part of the settlement, and that will bankrupt SITC. We canât afford more than 16%, and even thatâs going to screw us over for years,â he sagged, holding his head in his hands, elbows on the polished conference room table.
Elsa looked down at the papers before her. Amidst all the dense legal language were notes in her own handwriting, along with what appeared to be colorful little squares of paper in someone elseâs handwriting. In the margins on one of the first sheets, she read the basic terms of the settlement agreement. SITC - the Southern Isles Trading Corporation - and Weselton Corporation - were in some kind of dispute over a trade of gold ore. From her alter egoâs handwritten notes, there was some kind of shipping accident, and SITC had lost a substantial amount of Weseltonâs gold ore.
In exchange for no admission of fault, SITC was to pay Weselton Corporation the market value of the gold plus a fee of 22%. If SITC did not agree to the penalty, Weselton Corporation would pursue a verdict admitting liability in court, which could permanently ruin the companyâs ability to keep its customers or find new ones. Elsa arched an eyebrow. âRemind me again please - Jay - we are certain that 22% is unmanageable?â
The red-headed man nodded vigorously. âAnd Weselton knows it, too. He had access to our financials as part of a failed merger two years ago. Heâs trying to put me out of business so he can lay claim to our ore processing capabilities, do a hostile takeover in bankruptcy.â
Elsa stood up, and gave Hansâ doppelganger a smile that didnât reach her eyes. âPlease excuse me for just a moment. Maggie?â She motioned with her head for them to step outside the room. Once she was in the corridor and the door closed behind her, she grabbed Maggie by the shoulders. âIâm completely out of my depth here, Maggie! What am I going to do?â
Maggie trembled. âI- I donât know, Ms. Beck! Iâm just a clerk, I donât actually know anything about this kind of case.â
Elsa took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and thought carefully. While the sovereign could do pretty much whatever she wanted, most of the time disputes in her court were handled by lesser magistrates or Crown courts. That said, as sovereign, she was expected to know the vast majority of the nationâs laws, should a case be brought before her in open court. In Arendelleâs laws, any agreement was null and void if it was made under duress, from arranged marriages to water rights for a farm. A fair amount of Europe and the United Kingdom followed similar principles.
Just as the idea occurred to her, the lawyer that had barged into her office came back, along with what she assumed was this worldâs Duke of Weselton. The man was almost exactly the same as the Duke of Weselton she knew - short, loud, obnoxious, overdressed, fake hair. She stifled a giggle behind her hand as everyone filed back into the conference room.
âMr. MacDonald!â Weselton called shrilly, his nasal voice piercing the air of the room as he grinned wolfishly, the predatorâs smile as it closed in on its prey. âIs the agreement signed, or are we going to court?â
Elsa finally put the name to the face - the man who had crashed into her office was the Mr. MacDonald she had come to see about medical leave. Contrary to his brusque, bold behavior earlier, he looked cowed now, hunching over in his seat as Jay glared at him. The pieces began to fall into place for Elsa. SITC was their responsibility, and it was clear that they were on the rocks. She had no idea just how big a client they were, but it was important enough that MacDonald looked ill.
Anna, what would you do? How would you handle this? she asked herself, imagining her bold sister taking the initiative. Would she do something funny? Would she dive headfirst into the problem? Oh, Anna. I miss you so. Elsa took a deep breath and set her jaw, then stood up.
âNo, Mr. Weselton, the agreement is not signed. The agreement will not be signed, and the case will not be going before the Cr- courts,â she said in her most regal voice and posture. MacDonald and Maggie both sat up immediately in shock at the change in her voice; the senior lawyerâs shoulders were practically brushing his ears, he was so stressed about this case.
âI beg your pardon, young lady?â Weselton peered at her through his ridiculously anachronistic monocle. âNow see here-â
âI am speaking,â Elsa commanded, channeling the full power and authority of her crown; regardless of the time period or place, her tone brooked no dissent. âYou were aware of SITCâs financial situation and chose recompense that would be financially ruinous to the firm. So you presented them with a choice: either reputational ruin by forcing them before a magistrate, or financial ruin with a settlement they cannot afford.â
She began to slowly pace, her hands behind her back, as she took a slow, even breath. She could feel the ghost of Annaâs smile encouraging her on, settling her stomach. âDo you know, Mr. Weselton, what that is called in my coun- in my considered opinion? That is attempting to force an agreement under duress, and itâs well-established in international law that an agreement made under duress is null and void.â As she paced, the temperature in the room slowly grew colder.
Elsa spun on her heel, facing Weselton, whose jaw was open, his mouth soundlessly flapping like a fish out of water. âI think you will find that your case is without merit. You could put it before⊠before the Queen of Norway and youâd have no chance of winning. Now⊠I believe SITC would be amenable to an 11% fee, but certainly not 22%. If you agree right here and now, before this group of people, I will forget this attempt to blackmail SITC into signing your terms.â
She sat back down at her seat and stared at Weselton, unblinking. She knew from years of hearing cases in open court that the first party to speak lost, so she simply bided her time as beads of nervous sweat broke out on the short manâs forehead, despite the coldness of the room. Maggie, Jay, and MacDonald squirmed and fidgeted uncomfortably as she sat statue-still, her iron gaze unmoving from Weseltonâs eyes.
âVery well. In exchange for confidentiality about this entire incident, 11%, but not a dime less,â Weselton said imperiously, his tone of voice mismatching his tentative glances towards everyone else at the table as he shivered. âMy, itâs cold in here, isnât it?â, he laughed nervously.
Elsa gave no hint of emotion as she amended the agreement filing by hand, then slid the paper across the table. âYour signature, please.â Her right hand twitched once as muscle memory of gaveling open court judgements returned to her, the ghost of the mallet kept on her throne during open court.
Once Weselton signed the paper and pushed it back across the table, Elsa permitted herself to smile. âNow, Mr. Weselton, I believe that concludes our business today. Someone will assist you in the execution of the agreement. In the meantime, Magnolia here will see you out. Good day, sir.â she said, resisting the temptation to speak her usual words at the end of open court, âThe Crown has spokenâ.
The little man stood up in a huff, glared at everyone in the room, and then stomped out like a toddler as Maggie held the door for him. Once the conference room door closed, Elsa turned to see Hans - Jay - clapping slowly as the room returned to a normal temperature.
âThat was⊠impressive, Ms. Beck. Fucking impressive. Lindsey, I knew you had talented folks on staff, but you never told me you had a negotiator like this!â Hans exclaimed, clapping the head lawyer on the shoulder. âYouâve been holding out on me, brother. Better be careful or Iâll poach her for my legal team!â he laughed.
The lawyer, Lindsey MacDonald, exhaled as though he hadnât breathed since walking in the room, his body finally letting go of the tension. âYeah, uh, Elsa was on a different case, but I pulled her in because of how important SITC is to the firm.â
âWell, needless to say, we will be staying with your firm as long as Ms. Beck here litigates our major cases. Iâll have my team start drawing up the papers for the settlement and for your new retainer. Golf tomorrow, man?â Jay asked as he gathered his personal items into a briefcase that appeared to be highly polished leather and gold trim, not bothering to wait for the nod from the head lawyer.
After Jayâs departure, Elsa released all the tension she herself was holding in, sighing and letting herself sink into the chair. Lindsey looked across the conference room table at her, leaning far back in the plush office chair, his oddly out-of-place leather cowboy boots on the table. âThat was⊠unexpected, Elsa. I didnât think you had it in you.â
Elsa wasnât sure how to react to that statement. The various emails sheâd seen in her inbox from MacDonald hadnât given any indication of what kind of working relationship they had, save that he was her superior and an equity partner at the firm. âI⊠saw a lapse in Duke- err, Weseltonâs judgement. Heâs full of bluster and hot air, but in the end, heâs a coward who will fold when the pressure is on.â
âHow could you know that?â the lawyer asked, running his hand over his product-laden hair. âThis was Krisâ case, youâve never interacted with the little shit before today.â
âIâve⊠known people like him in the past,â she said, clearing her throat. âI was actually coming to see you before you came into my office. Itâs⊠itâs a personal issue that I will need some time to resolve.â The confidence sheâd channeled in the negotiations evaporated as she stared at her hands. Worry grabbed her stomach in a fist and squeezed. She had no idea whether this reality was permanent or not, but she couldnât afford to screw things up and leave a mess behind, or wreck this Elsaâs life.
âFuck, Elsa, do whatever you want. Go on vacation for a month, I donât care. Do you realize how much the SITC settlement means? Jayâs over the goddamn moon. He wanted to try to settle for 16%, was hoping for 14%, and you forced Weseltonâs hand at 11%. Do you know how big a deal that is?â Lindsey practically shouted, a lopsided grin on his face. âThe ship Jay lost was carrying 5,000 tons of high-grade gold ore worth $6.2 billion. You forced Weselton to give up $682 million today in settlement penalties. Jayâs not going to forget that - you basically saved his entire company in one pen stroke. And that means we can name pretty much whatever retainer we want, which is going to make me look great to the Senior Partners. So yeah, you do whatever you want for the next month, okay?â
Elsa breathed out, nodding slowly as though the news wasnât a surprise. It would seem I managed to save the Southern Isles today. I wonder if this Hans is just as much a treacherous asshole as the one from my time, she thought to herself. âA-all right. Iâm not sure how long Iâll be out, but Iâll be sure to stay in touch.â
The two shook hands and departed the conference room as Lindsey went to brief the Senior Partners and Elsa headed for her office to pack up. Even though it was the start of the workday, she didnât want to press her luck by sticking around and revealing the truth.
As she headed out the door, Maggie flagged her down, racing after her. âHey, Ms. Beck! Elsa! Did you get a chance to talk to Mr. MacDonald?â
âI did, yes. Iâm to take some time off, but be available with this,â she waved the iPhone in her hand. âSo if you need me, please feel free to⊠um, reach me.â She paused, looking at Maggie, who was practically jumping up and down as excitedly as Anna - her sister Anna - did when she was bursting at the seams to say something.
Maggie looked at Elsa as though she had descended from the heavens itself. She pressed her hands together in front of her and practically squealed, âThat meeting⊠I am amazed, Ms. Beck. To have even been willing to do anything with your⊠handicap right now, much less save a major client for the firm! I hope you donât mind me fangirling a little, but I want to be half the lawyer you are someday! How did you even know what to do?â
Elsa smiled, gently resting a hand on Maggieâs shoulder, which the clerk immediately covered with her own hands, smiling. âI should hope that you are substantially more of a lawyer than I am feeling right now, and I suspect you already are. As for the meeting⊠a little luck, a little magic, and a lot of life experience. Youâll get there someday.â She turned and walked out the door, waving over her shoulder as she headed for the elevators and the world outside.
Authorâs Notes
Magnolia, for those who donât know, is the literal translation of the name Mulan.
Jay is a nickname for Johannes, which is also shortened to⊠Hans.
There is an anachronism by design in this story; the concept of a contract being signed under duress being invalid as far as I could tell didnât exist as a concept in international law until 1891, at least according to Blackâs Law Dictionary. Sir Francis Bacon apparently introduced the concept in the 1600s, but that applied to English law only and wouldnât have been applicable in the joint kingdom of Norway and Sweden :)
And yes, I might have borrowed Lindsey MacDonald from a different franchise.
Join The Party
Enjoyed this story? Want to meet fellow readers and discuss? Join the Elsanna Shenanigans community on Discord at discord.gg/TU9NpnH (copy and paste that URL for AO3 friends, go to discord dot gg slash TU9NpnH for FFN friends).
As always, please review, kudos, comment, like, follow, all that good stuff. I appreciate it.
Chapter 8: Secrets Deep Inside
Summary:
You⊠when you look at me, I see an unbreakable love and an unshakeable trust in your eyes. I⊠I couldnât lie to you, especially after you told me how you and your Anna are.
Chapter Text
Chapter 8: Secrets Deep Inside
Elsa unlocked the door to their apartment after the long ride on the light rail home. She still marveled at this world, even after having been in it for days; trains powered by the same energy as lightning bolts instead of coal and wood as they were in her time. Even the elevator at her office was astonishing; in her time, steam-powered ascending rooms were novelties, whereas in this time, they were mundane utilities at best. Some even had those black mirrors in them to show riders more entertainment, as though the ride itself wasnât stimulating enough.
After kicking off her shoes and putting her work stuff on the bed, she dug out her phone and recalled the lesson Anna had given her on how to operate the various basic apps. After briefly looking over all the colorful icons, she found the text messaging app.
>> crazy day today, but Iâm home now
Within moments, the phone began to ring and vibrate in her hand, startling her. Elsa stared at it for a few moments, unsure what to do as two large colored circles on the screen, a green one and a red one. Taking a small gamble, she tapped the green one and was rewarded with Annaâs voice.
âElsa? Are you okay? What are you doing at home? Youâre supposed to be at work,â Annaâs voice echoed from the tiny speaker. Elsa could practically see Anna pacing.
âIâm fine, Anna. Everythingâs fine - Iâll tell you the whole story when you come home,â she reassured with a slight grin. âBut everything is fine, really. I even managed to improve your Elsaâs work situation!â
Anna laughed. âOf course you did, Miss Queen of Arendelle. Ok, Iâll see if I can get out of work earlier than usual.â
âDonât worry about that. In f-factâŠâ Elsa stammered briefly, nervous about the suggestion she was about to make, ââŠIâm feeling a little adventurous. Want me to try to come visit you for lunch?â The modern world was amazing but people were still people, maps still maps. Feeling emboldened by her eventful morning, and worried that this change could be permanent, she told herself that she couldnât hide away forever. Sheâd done that for 13 years growing up.
âIf⊠if youâre sure you feel up to it, Elsa,â Anna offered, as though she could feel Elsaâs doubts nagging at the back of her mind.
âIâll be fine, Anna. Just let me know what the address is, and Iâll find my way there. Iâll message you as soon as I get to it.â
âOkay, baby. I mean-â
âAnna, itâs all right. If you call me baby sometimes, I mean. Itâs sort of adorable,â Elsa chuckled. She was rewarded with a deep exhalation of breath on the other end of the call.
âOkay. Call me if you run into any - ANY - trouble, okay? I love you, Elsa.â Along with her declaration of love, a text message appeared on the phone with the address,
âI love you too, Anna. See you soon, I hope!â She pressed the red icon and the call disconnected, then began to look around the bedroom for what to wear. Internally, she battled between creating her own clothing of ice, which she could manipulate more quickly, or clothing from the modern day. Deciding it was better to blend in, she opened her dresser to find mostly work clothing. This Elsa apparently enjoyed formality more than she did.
Moving over to the other side of the dresser, she rummaged through Annaâs far more casual clothing selection, until her hands hit something hard and metal at the back of the dresser. Whatâs this? She pulled the clothing back to reveal a small metal box, about a foot long, with rounded corners and a black square on the front, along with a small keyhole. She tried to pick it up, but it was bolted to the dresser itself.
Why would Anna have something bolted to the dresser? Thatâs a terrible idea if thereâs something valuable inside and you need to flee, she thought. Elsa racked her brain, looking at the strange container before covering it back up. Maybe itâs a jewelry safe, to keep the valuables from being stolen. It is awfully small. Sheâd ask Anna about it at lunch, then grabbed another hoodie and some clean yoga pants before heading out.
After 45 minutes of fits and starts, her train arrived at the Copley/Back Bay station, and she walked up the stairs to emerge in front of a massive glass monolith that stretched to the sky, far taller than any of the buildings in Arendelle. Elsaâs breath caught in her throat as she craned her neck to see the whole of the building. The skyscraper in front of her almost looked a little like ice, reflecting the blue and white sky above it.
After recovering from the shock and wonder of seeing such an immense, beautiful structure, something far taller than even her ice palace on the North Mountain, she made her way towards it. At the base of the tower, massive revolving doors spun in never-ending lazy circles, the building spewing out people like some kind of monstrous creature. Elsa shook herself out of her trance and opened her phone, texting Anna that she was just outside.
Anna immediately texted back that sheâd be down in just 5 minutes, so Elsa sat down on a stone bench near the entrance, just people-watching. A menagerie of different people came in and out of the massive office complex; some were dressed like her, casually. Many were in suits and other formalwear, she gathered, though none of the outfits would be remotely appropriate in her time for the Royal Court. And more than a few people came in and out who appeared to be soldiers of some kind, based on the guns and dark outfits they wore. A few even wore some kind of helmet that obscured their entire face.
So engrossed was she in watching the people coming in and out of the building that she didnât notice the person behind her until hands covered her eyes. âGuess who?â said the hidden voice, full of mirth. Elsa smirked and made her skin ice cold, causing Anna to squeak and withdraw her hands immediately.
âThatâs no fair, you stinker! Using your⊠uh⊠eyelashes like that!â she stammered, covering her near-slip of the tongue. She playfully tousled Elsaâs hair before sitting down next to her. âNo problems getting here?â
Elsa gave her a long look before chuckling, covering her mouth with her hand. âAnna, the office is literally 5 blocks from here. Getting here is pretty much the same way I went to get to work this morning.â
âI forgot that you⊠didnât forget. I mean, that you knew where it was because youâd been there!â Anna said, crossing her arms. âAnyway, Iâm glad you got here okay. Anything in mind you want for lunch?â
âI still have no idea what all is available. The food choices here are⊠well, almost inconceivable.â She lowered her voice and leaned in towards Anna. âBack home, we had what the palace chefs prepared, and occasionally foreign foods when we had visiting ambassadors, but nothing like this. Itâs astonishing - foods from all over the world, and available to everyone. Like that, over there. Whatâs that?â
Anna turned her head to follow the direction of Elsaâs comment, then wrinkled her nose. âEww, no. No Subway. Their food tastes terrible. If you want something like that, Iâd say either Chipotle or Boloco. Theyâre both Mexican food places.â She looped her elbow with Elsaâs and began walking across the grassy green area towards the row of restaurants.
Elsaâs gaze softened. âIâve never seen or heard anything Mexican. I know during my time that this country had just annexed the Republic of Texas, but Iâve obviously never left Arendelle, certainly not to this hemisphere. Iâd always wondered what it would be like to be able to travel, to see different parts of the world.â
Anna spun around, her eyes wide, almost stumbling over the brick sidewalk as they walked towards the restaurants. âWait, what? We annexed Texas? From Mexico? I donât remember learning this in school!â
âY-yes, yes this nation did. Your president, John Tyler, annexed it just a few years ago. In fact, the American ambassador made a brief stop in Arendelle on a Scandinavian tour earlier this year, trying to win support for his new administration. He was afraid various nations wouldnât recognize his presidency.â
Anna shook her head. âWhat new administration? This is all so new to me - and Iâm American!â She pushed open the glass door to Chipotle, the scents of tortillas and beans filling the air.
Elsa looked around in wonder at all the colors, sounds, and smells, the noises of food service, the loud pop music playing in the background. âThis⊠is amazing, Anna. What is all this?â she pointed at the overhead menus.
âOh, youâll probably want⊠Iâd say, get the chicken burrito with fajita veggies and cheese. That oneâs really good.â She sidled up to the counter and called out her order; Anna ate at one of the local restaurants twice a week, and the staff here recognized her at once, waving to her from behind the counter.
After getting their orders and sitting down, Elsa continued Annaâs impromptu history lesson as Anna laid out the dishes and placed her phone face down on the table. âSo yes, last year, your president died of pneumonia, and there was quite the little kerfuffle that made the papers even in Scandinavia about the line of succession.â
Anna shook her head, scooping up a lump of guacamole with her tortilla chips. âItâs so weird, Elsa. I mean, to hear you talk about this stuff in the present tense when for me, itâs literally 177 years ago. Kind of mind-blowing.â She bit into her barbacoa burrito, messily dropping rice and beans all over her plate.
Elsa stared at the giant burrito in front of her. âAnna⊠how am I supposed to eat this? Itâs⊠itâs as large as my forearm.â She looked around and saw a rack of plastic utensils and grabbed one of each. The portion sizes of food in this time period astonished her; this single serving could easily feed three people in her own time. Were it affordable, she thought, a restaurant like this could end hunger in a village in just a few meals. Sitting back down, she began to slice open the burrito as though it were a beef roast, delicately cutting through it and trying to spear it with her fork.
âUh⊠thatâs not how you eat that, Elsa. You just pick it up and take a big bite,â Anna said around her own burrito, a few bits of rice clinging around her mouth.
âThis is so⊠uncivilized, Anna. No one should be putting something this big in their mouth,â she scoffed, finally managing to get some of the burrito contents on her plastic fork. She took a bite, and the flavors exploded in her mouth as her eyes widened. âAnna! Anna! It- it- it burns! Oh goodness, it BURNS.â She channeled her powers to cool off her tongue and throat from the spices in the food, sighing as she numbed her tongue. She blinked tears out of her eyes. âWhy didnât you tell me it was so spicy!â
âElsa⊠itâs⊠not. Thatâs the mild burrito. The spicy one is the one with the extra jalapenos in it,â Anna smirked, trying to hide her laugh behind her burrito. âWant a bite of mine? Itâs the spicy one.â
Elsa vigorously shook her head before removing the plastic lid from her drink cup and taking a sip of her diet soda. She immediately began coughing. âThis is⊠what is this? Itâs like a sugary champagne!â
Anna turned her chair to pat her on the back. âThatâs Diet Coke. ItâŠâ she looked down at her phone, typing in a quick search. âIt wonât be invented for another 140 years for you,â she whispered.
âItâs⊠actually not bad, all things considered. A little too sweet for me, but itâs bearable. And it comes with a little handle for the lid, which is very thoughtful for keeping your hands clean,â she mentioned, holding up the lid by the straw.
By this point, Anna was coughing into her hand over and over again as Elsa experienced so many new things in one day. She didnât have the heart to tell her the plastic straw wasnât a handle at all. âSo, tell me what happened at your office?â
Elsa recounted all the events of the morning, the SITC deal, Weselton, and the acknowledgement she received from her supervisor for smoothly handling what was apparently a difficult negotiation.
âOh my god Elsa, thatâs amazing. You⊠I mean, my Elsa was wrapped around the axle on this case. She was up so many nights going over the details with a fine-toothed comb, trying to find a way to avoid having the case go to trial, looking for every little loophole and technicality, and you squashed it in a few minutes? I mean, I guess it makes sense, if youâre the Queen and youâre acting like a judge all the time. Thatâs kindaâŠâ Anna squirmed as she heaped praise on Elsa, ââŠhot.â
âHot? Why is that hot?â Elsa wondered aloud, tilting her head.
âItâs a euphemism that⊠please tell me you know what hot means?â she gestured wildly, waving the remains of her burrito in the air.
âLike, heat?â
âNo, like⊠attractive!â Anna blushed, her face as red as her hair as her burrito hit the table with a thud. âI canât believe you donât say someoneâs hot!â
Elsa giggled. âAnna⊠based on what you know about me, when would I ever think anything hot was appealing?â
Anna swatted her arm with a handful of folded napkins as Elsa held her stomach, doubling over with laughter.
A moment later, Annaâs phone beeped softly, a sound like a wind chime, and her face shifted. The smile and crowâs feet around her eyes vanished in the blink of an eye, and the air around her changed as though a magic trick had replaced one person with another.
âH-hang on, thatâs the office. L-let me see whatâs up,â she stammered, picking up her phone. Her eyes quickly scanned over the screen as her lips parted without a word; her normally tanned skin appeared to blanche.
Elsa reached across the table and lay a hand gently on her shoulder. âAnna? What is it?â Whatever it was, it was close enough to her Annaâs reaction about something deadly serious, something deeply concerning.
âItâs⊠um, thereâs an emergency all-hands meeting at the office. I- I have to go, Elsa.â She shoved the last bite of her burrito in her mouth, cheeks full like a squirrel, as she gathered up her belongings. âI wuw see wu b hm!â she said through the food, causing Elsa to arch her eyebrow. âI said, Iâll see you back home, Elsa. I- I really have to go!â Anna blew Elsa a quick kiss out of habit and burst out the door of the shop, sprinting towards her office.
Elsa nodded, the whirlwind of activity receding as she sat with her partially eaten burrito. Something nagged at her mind; Anna acted as though the message for a meeting was something far more grave. She shook her head to herself; whatever it was, she was sure Anna would share it later that evening.
â-
That night, Anna came home from work later than usual; the last few days sheâd tried to make it home as quickly as possible to support the newly-arrived Elsa. As she stumbled in the door, she let her backpack hit the floor with a thump, not especially caring about the laptop inside, and she sagged against the wall, exhaling.
âAnna?â Elsa peeked around the corner, looking at the redhead. Whatever had interrupted their lunch, it must have been quite pressing. Anna looked awful, fatigued, her eyes unfocused, her shoulders rising and falling as she caught her breath. âWhat happened?â
As though awoken from a dream, Anna started, instinctively jumping back a little before catching herself and throwing her arms around Elsa. âI, uh, Iâm sorry for bailing on lunch like that, baby. It was just a hell of a day,â she sighed, letting her weight sink onto the blonde.
Elsa rubbed small circles on Annaâs back as she held her close. In moments, Annaâs shoulders began to heave and Elsaâs shoulder became damp with tears. âHey⊠Anna⊠whatâs going on? What happened today?â
Anna pulled back, her palms on Elsaâs biceps as her lips trembled, her eyes rapidly looking at Elsaâs. âI- it- it was just a rough day, you know? Lots of - lots of stuff happened, had a rough meeting.â She dropped her eyes towards her hands, still on Elsaâs arms. âIâm sorry, itâs⊠Iâm being silly, I know. Itâs nothing, really.â
âThis isnât nothing, Anna. You may not be my sister here, but I know when someoneâs troubled, when somethingâs eating at a person.â She touched a finger under Annaâs chin, gently lifting her head up. âMy Anna taught me that, you know. You both have such big hearts and know exactly when somethingâs not right. And Iâm telling you, somethingâs not right.â
âItâs nothing, really. Can- can we talk about something else for a little while, Elsa? Please?â
Elsa nodded. âAll right. Iâve been meaning to ask you about something, but I didnât have a chance to during lunch. Can you come into the bedroom for a moment?â At Annaâs wide-eyed expression, Elsaâs hand shot to her mouth, covering it. âNot- not like that! I mean, I didnât mean to imply that! Sorry!â
Both women giggled for a few moments before Elsa led Anna to the bedroom, sitting her down on the bed. âI donât know what kind of relationship you have with your Elsa, not in depth, but one of the things my Anna and I agreed on after my coronation is no more secrets, no more hiding. I couldnât shut her out, wouldnât shut her out. I promised to tell her everything - maybe not immediately, but always at some point.â She took a deep breath as Anna watched her, an eyebrow subtly raised just a touch. âWhile I was getting ready today, I stumbled on something, so I wanted to tell you and apologize if it was private. Just like I wonât hide anything from her, I wonât hide anything from you.â
Anna turned her head to the side a little, looking very quickly at her dresser before turning back to face Elsa, who hadnât noticed as she was staring at her feet.
âCan⊠can I see it?â
âSee what, Elsa?â Anna asked after a long moment.
âThe jewelry!â
Annaâs brow furrowed. âWhat jewelry, Elsa? I donât really have any jewelry.â
Elsa pointed at the dresser. âThe jewelry safe you have in your dresser. I saw it earlier, the one thatâs bolted down.â
Anna paled and her mouth opened and closed like a goldfish for a few moments. Her hands gripped the blanket on the bed, crumpling it up in her fists until her knuckles turned white. She had hidden the safe carefully in the far back of the dresser, to avoid anyone finding it, covering it with clothing. Her Elsa had such different fashion tastes that they rarely shared any clothing, and Elsa wouldnât have been digging around in the back of the wardrobe.
She took a deep breath to settle herself a little. âItâs⊠not a jewelry safe.â She weighed how much of the truth to tell this Elsa, how much of her real story to share. As she mulled over her choices, Elsa tilted her head, waiting expectantly.
âItâs⊠Iâll show you.â She walked over to the dresser, pulled the clothing aside, and revealed the box that Elsa had found earlier. Anna pressed her palm against the black square and the box beeped, recognizing her handprint. A gentle whirring of gears echoed off the walls of the wardrobe as the box lid popped open.
Elsa looked inside. âWhat⊠Anna, that⊠that is definitely not jewelry. Is thatâŠ?â
âIt is. Thatâs my sidearm.â
Elsa was no stranger to firearms; a salesman from Samuel Colt had visited the kingdom, offering to sell Arendelle several large shipments of rifles and their new revolvers once sheâd opened up the gates to the outside world. While this appeared to be different than a revolver, its overall purpose and design was unmistakable.
âWhy do you have a sidearm?â
Anna sat down gracelessly on the bed, almost flopping onto it. âYou said no secrets with your Anna?â She was given a silent nod. âMy Elsa and I have⊠a different relationship. Not a bad one, not at all. We love each other, but we agreed early on weâd also have our own lives, have things we did separately. We didnât want to end up codependent.â
She thought back to the first year of their relationship. After the heady whirlwind that was always new love, theyâd settled into a routine of sorts. Elsa had graduated from college and headed for Boston Universityâs law school as Anna went through her undergraduate degree. Anna majored in English, but unlike her peers who went into journalism or public relations, she was recruited for her communications and persuasion skills by what had first appeared to be a business, but turned out to be the clandestine service of a US Government agency.
As Anna recounted her past, Elsaâs eyebrows rose almost to her hairline. âSo, after a few years in the Professional Trainee program, I became an operations officer. I was able to stay stationed here in the local office, and Elsa and I were able to settle down.â
âWhy havenât you told her any of this?â
âWe were warned from the very beginning that people in the National Clandestine Services needed to keep things quiet. Our families and loved ones could become targets of our enemies, so better that no one knows what we really do,â she said, her hand hesitantly reaching out for Elsaâs.
Elsa caught the motion and clasped Annaâs hand, eliciting a sigh of relief from the woman. âAnd the ad agency?â
Anna gave a soft smile. âThatâs real. Itâs a real company, I have a real job there, but my boss is also my supervising officer. The agency is actually pretty decent; weâve won a few awards here and there. But more important, agency life is well suited for my line of work. I can get on a plane and leave at a momentâs notice and just claim it as a sales pitch or an emergency client meeting, and no one questions it.â
Elsa scooted over and wrapped an arm around Annaâs waist, letting the woman rest her head on Elsaâs shoulder and lean into her. âWhy tell me, then?â
âBecause of the way you look at me, baby.â Anna gently stroked a finger up and down Elsaâs thigh. âYou⊠when you look at me, I see an unbreakable love and an unshakeable trust in your eyes. I⊠I couldnât lie to you, especially after you told me how you and your Anna are.â She looked up, tears pooling in her eyes. âI wish I had that with my Elsa.â
âWhy donât you?â Elsa asked softly, pulling Anna closer.
âI donât know. I just feel like⊠maybe we got too comfortable? Maybe we wanted to be too comfortable? We donât fight, we hardly disagree, but⊠we arenât as close as we used to be. I thought it was just the stress of her trying to make it to partner, and me running all over the place for work but⊠with you here this week, itâs made me realize just how much weâve changed. How much Iâve changed, how much I⊠hide. And I donât want that, not any more.â Anna shuddered, struggling not to burst into tears. âIâm so tired of lying to you.â
Elsa stroked her fingers through Annaâs hair with her free hand, pulling Annaâs head close to let her cry. âYouâre less carefree than my Anna, you know. Less impulsive. Maybe itâs just because you are a decade older than her, or the stress of your job. But I think it might be that you and your Elsa need to find your love again. You said the other night you donât go for walks as much. And⊠you murmured this morning thatâŠâ Elsa blushed at the memory of Annaâs hands groping her, âthat you arenât as intimate either. Maybe you need to remind each other of who you really are, who you fell in love with.â
âFor someone whoâs a decade younger than me, youâre an awfully wise woman,â Anna sniffled. She tilted her head up and softly pressed her lips against Elsaâs, and to her great surprise, Elsa didnât pull away. Anna savored how soft and cool Elsaâs skin felt, a wonderful contrast to the warmth of her lips, and she pressed her palm against Elsaâs thigh as she deepened the kiss.
After a few heated moments, Anna pulled away and caught her breath. She craved this, the connection, the heat, the tentative gentleness that masked volcanic passion. She was equally surprised to see Elsa next to her, cheeks flushed, eyes closed, as though she were savoring the experience, rather than be unsettled by it. âAre⊠you okay with this, Elsa?â she whispered.
âI⊠I am. I didnât think I would be but⊠youâre not my Anna, my sister. Youâre your own person, and⊠I finally realize that now. Youâre unique in your own right,â Elsa murmured, cupping Annaâs cheek with her palm. âAnd youâre beautiful.â
Annaâs breath hitched as Elsaâs words washed over her like a tidal wave. Was it possible that this Elsa felt something for her that was more than sororal affection? Before she could react, Elsa took the initiative and leaned down to kiss her lips again, and all other conscious thought ceased.
Authorâs Notes
The usage of the term hot to mean sexually attractive only dates back to 1926, according to the OED.
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Chapter 9: Killer Frost
Summary:
She closed her eyes and shivered. *Elsa*, she thought, not even sure which Elsa she was thinking of, *I love you.*
Chapter Text
Chapter 9: Killer Frost
Anna woke minutes before her alarm to find a pair of arms around her midsection and a very warm, very soft body pressed against her back. As the haze of sleep lifted, she remembered where she was - and who was behind her. She turned her head, her chin brushing her shoulder, to see Elsa sleeping peacefully behind her. Elsa was dressed in her favorite maroon robe, though one side had come loose, revealing her right shoulder. Memories of the previous evening swarmed around her mind like fireflies; tearful confessions, secrets, and then kissing⊠and more than kissing. Hands roamed, though Elsaâs clothes never went anywhere.
What am I to her? Anna asked herself. Clearly more than just someone in her sisterâs image. She cares about me as⊠me.
She turned back, looking at her nightstand as she bit her lower lip. What is she to me? Sheâs more than someone who looks like my wife. Sheâs⊠someone I think I could love just as much as my wife. Fuck. And sheâs so much younger than me. Oh god? Am I having a midlife crisis already? Annaâs stomach churned slightly at the thought. Am I cheating on Elsa⊠with Elsa?
Before she could contemplate the crazy dynamics of the relationship, her smartphoneâs alarm went off, Lady Gagaâs Bad Romance blaring from the tiny speakers. She reached for the nightstand and managed to grab her phone just as Elsa began to stir. âHey baby, itâs okay. Go back to sleep,â she murmured, threading her fingers through the blondeâs bangs and gently kissing her forehead.
Anna quietly rolled out of bed and got dressed, gazing fondly at the slumbering woman still in bed. Her fingers tingled as memories of touching Elsa gently washed over her, the coolness of her skin unforgettable. Whatever their status was, whatever they were to each other, she couldnât deny that having such closeness with Elsa again - her Elsa or not - was like a bottle - no, an oasis of ice water in the desert.
Slipping out of the bedroom, Anna waddled to the kitchen and popped an espresso pod in the shiny silver machine on the counter. Moments later, she sat on one of the bar stools, scrolling through her inbox and sipping her espresso, looking for what the day would bring as she forced her feelings for Elsa down for the moment.
Dread settled in her stomach like sheâd swallowed a bowl full of gravel as she remembered the emergency meeting her team had the previous day. Rumor of a terrorist group that was trying to acquire a chemical weapon was what had set the office abuzz; informants had credible evidence that such a weapon existed and that a terrorist organization intended to set it off in the city, likely killing or severely injuring everyone who lived within the city limits.
She looked towards the bedroom door, still able to see Elsa slumbering. Whether this is permanent or not, whether youâre my wife or not, I have to keep you safe. She gulped the rest of her espresso shot, grabbed her keys and backpack, and headed out for the day.
âBeck!â her supervising officer called to her moments after she got to her desk, gesturing towards the conference room. âQuick all-hands meeting, come on.â She sighed, grabbed her second cup of coffee for the morning, and headed into the secure conference room in the back of the office, swiping her badge at the door.
Once the staff was settled in, the glass conference room windows snapped to opaque black, blotting out the world, and the subtle red LED highlights that bordered the ceiling of the room turned green, indicating that signal jamming was on. Her supervising officer, known in the agency as Dusty but for those in the Clandestine Service as Lt. Colonel Dustin Mattias, stood at the front of the room.
âThank you all for coming in so quickly, especially those of you who had to travel in this morning,â he said, his rich, mellifluous voice filling the conference room with warmth as the dozen people around the table sat back in their chairs, tablets in hand. âAs you know, we had a rumor yesterday of a terrorist group potentially in possession of a chemical weapon.â Mattias gestured towards the wall as a large screen TV lit up, showing surveillance video from the docks near the Conley cargo ship terminal.
âWhat you see here is at least partial confirmation of that rumor. A cargo ship arrived yesterday from Europe with at least one container aboard that wasnât on any manifest,â he said, clicking through the photographs taken of the ship and crew offloading standard-size cargo containers, like giant Lego blocks. âOur sources indicated that this container here, numbered X1750, was offloaded without any of the normal processes.â
Video footage definitely indicated something was unusual about the container. Despite the standard markings for a cargo container, it appeared heavier than normal and had what looked like substantial climate control hardware on the end, ventilation ducts protruding from the side. Anna took careful notes, focusing on the markings on the container. She lightly chewed on the end of her stylus.
âThis particular containerâs last known location was in Denmark. Our sources indicate it was loaded, without any of the correct paperwork, on this cargo ship 22 days ago. Thermal scans indicate it has far more cooling equipment than standard for any cargo container, and if this is a chemical weapon, keeping it cool and stable would be essential for getting it to its destination. We need to verify the contents of that container.â
Anna looked down at her tablet, seeing the cargo manifest for the container, and her eyes bulged. The containerâs registry indicated it was purchased by the Southern Isles Trading Company - SITC, one of Elsaâs clients. âDusty, do we know for sure that the container came from SITC?â she asked, a slight quaver in her voice.
Mattias nodded, changing the screen to show a cluster of red-headed men standing outside of a large warehouse. âSecurity footage puts the containerâs origin at this facility here, an SITC warehouse in Aarhus, the largest port in Denmark. Facial recognition identified these three guys as part of the Westergaard family, the owners of the company.â He changed slides to a floor plan of the Boston shipping terminal. âOk, hereâs the plan. Anna, youâll take a team down to the terminal under the guise of being customs inspectors. We need positive identification of the contents of the container. Once you get on site, clear out everyone and then your HAZMAT gear on. Jim, Mary, youâll back her up. The intel team will try to trace who the acquiring party is supposed to be on this end-â
Anna raised her hand. âDusty, I think I might have a source for some of that. Can Jim lead the team while I run it down? Itâs local.â
Mattias nodded. âYeah, this is a simple sneak and peek, that should be no problem. Jim, youâll take the lead. Timmy, youâre on backup. Whoâs the source, Anna?â
âMy wifeâs law firm,â Anna grimaced. âElsa was saying she met with someone from SITC the other day about a ship that had an accident in transit.â
âGood. I mean, not good that itâs entangled with your wife, but good that itâs a local source that we can chase down quickly. Time is of the essence.â He turned to face the room as a whole. âAll right, folks. You know what to do, letâs get it done. Everyoneâs on comms; keep me apprised of your findings.â The 12 staffers in the room all stood up at once, gathered their belongings, and left to get their tasks done.
Anna sat in the posh lobby of Klein & Gabler, waiting for Elsaâs intern Maggie to come get her. The petite Chinese woman rounded the corner, arms full of file folders, and struggled to wave slightly. âMrs. Beck! Is everything okay? Elsa didnât mention youâd be stopping by.â
Annaâs chest tightened and her face heated, shame suffusing her with what she was about to do. âYeah, uh, sheâs at home, taking some time off. You know, the whole head injury thing. And she sent me over to pick up a few things for her.â Anna pulled out a sticky note that sheâd intentionally wrinkled up, as though it had been in her pocket all day. âUh, she wanted some of the files for theâŠâ she turned the note on its side, pretending to struggle reading it, âSTIC case? SITC case?â
Maggie smiled. âSure thing! In fact, I was just collating the most recent notes on my way from another meeting.â She unceremoniously dumped all the folders on the leather armchair and began to riffle through them. âAh, here it is, this is the SITC file. Do you need me to get you a bag or something? Iâm sure I can find a used takeout bag in the kitchen.â
âNo, Iâm all set, Iâll just put it in my backpack so it stays safe. Thanks, Maggie!â Anna hurried out of the office as quickly as she could without attracting attention, knowing that Elsa would still be at home. She stepped out of the elevator at the ground floor andâŠ
⊠walked straight into Elsa.
âWhat are you doing here?â they both asked in shock. Anna recovered first, shaking her head slightly. âYouâre supposed to be at home, taking some time off,â she said, clutching the straps of her backpack tightly, her knuckles white.
âI thought Iâd take a few hours to explore the city, and I needed a water closet, so I figured it would be safest to use one at the law firm, since I know where that is,â Elsa said, scrunching her brow. âWhat are you doing here?â
âIâŠâ Anna thought for a moment, remembering what sheâd confessed in tears the previous night. No more lies. I canât lie to her. She doesnât deserve it. As she made her decision, she set her jaw and exhaled. âI canât tell you here. Letâs find a place to talk, and I promise Iâll explain.â She led Elsa by the forearm to a cafe across the street from the law firm, and stepped into a wall of noise.
Baristas pulled shot after shot, shouting customersâ names. Patrons clustered around tables and a standing bar, having conversations with each other, talking into Bluetooth headset, pushing past each other. The noise level was just below a dull roar, which was what Anna was looking for. Hiding in plain sight, in a room that no one could easily monitor, was perfect.
âThis is your idea of a place to talk?â Elsa shouted over the din, her elbows close to her side as she struggled to avoid running into people. Anna nodded wordlessly and took Elsa by the hand to a table in the back of the CafĂ© where the noise was slightly lower.
âAlmost no chance of someone overhearing us here,â she smiled briefly, then looked into Elsaâs eyes intently. âI was stopping by your office because I needed some information on SITC and I knew your office had dealt with them, especially about shipping stuff. Do you know any of these people?â Anna asked, holding out the tablet with the photo of the Westergaard family.
Elsa practically hissed, looking at the photo with a scowl. âI donât know how much help this will be in this world, but thatâs Carl, Frederik, and Hans. Hans is the youngest of King Georgâs 13 sons - heâs the one who tried to kill us in my time. In this world, he goes by Jay. I just met with him yesterday.â
âHere, theyâre a shipping magnate family based out of Denmark.â Anna shared the basic details about the investigation and the suspicions that SITC might be smuggling weapons into the city. Elsaâs eyes widened at the thought of a weapon - any kind of weapon - that could kill an entire city.
âOf course Hans is mixed up in some kind of shady business. I should have known that from the start,â she spat, disgusted at the fact that some things never change. âSo⊠youâre trying to find out based on what the law firm was working on whether thereâs a connection to this secret weapon?â Elsa asked as she riffled through the papers Maggie had put together.
âYes, and-â Annaâs phone made a high-pitched beeping sound, and she quickly fished it out of her pocket and put it on the table, screen up. She hunched over it to obscure the screen from anyone else nearby as Elsa leaned against her shoulder to see. After a couple seconds of interference, the video cleared up and it became apparent they were watching a team of people arriving at the container from someoneâs body camera.
Anna tapped her right ear to turn on her communications and immediately heard the NCS team opening the container. Agents had surrounded it, as a specialist cut the lock on the container with a welding torch. Elsa hugged Annaâs elbow as they watched the team work. Inside the container, vapor condensed, temporarily blinding the camera with fog.
Anna squeezed Elsaâs hand as the fog cleared, revealing a small chamber that was sturdily reinforced, like a giant bank safe. She started to narrate for Elsa what the team was saying on their radio. âTheyâve found the weapon container. They⊠theyâre not sure of the power source. Temperature inside is -25 degrees, plenty cold. Jim - heâs the guy leading the team - says the thing looks like itâs pretty sturdy. Theyâre looking for traps now, going to see if they can open it up safely.â
âTheyâre going to⊠wait, somethingâs happening.â On the screen, people in white head-to-toe suits began to run around, many of them reaching for their guns. Anna shook her head; the radio in her ear was suddenly filled with many voices shouting at the same time. âSomethingâs wrong. I hear⊠shit, I hear gunfire, Elsa. Someone else is there shooting at my team!â
They both watched in horror as the team leader fell to the ground, obviously injured. The video turned sideways, and they saw glimpses of soldiers in dark blue uniforms running past the fallen leader. âWho is that? Shit, I⊠I need to go help them, Elsa. Theyâre in trouble, and theyâre less than a mile from here.â
Elsa stood up quickly and helped gather Annaâs papers into her backpack. âIâll help you.â
âNo, Elsa, itâs too dangerous. These⊠whoever this is, theyâre not playing around. Theyâre shooting to kill. I- I canât risk having you get hurt.â
Elsa rubbed Annaâs arm softly and leaned over, her lips just barely brushing the shell of Annaâs ear. âIâll help you with my powers. Iâll be safe - and Iâll make sure youâre safe too. Trust me, Anna.â Elsa squeezed her forearm.
Anna looked up to see Elsaâs eyes boring into hers and nodded ever so slightly. They ran out the door of the coffee shop together.
A mileâs sprint later, the two women stood at the perimeter of the shipping terminal, leaning against the wall of a shipping container. The containers formed almost a maze, filling Anna with anxiety. Around every corner could be one or more shooters. âFuck, I wish I had my body armor. This is going to be messy, Elsa. Stay behind me as best as you can.â
âArmor?â
âYeah, to stop the bullets. You saw the video, these guys are packing, big time. Mine is at my office; I didnât think Iâd need it to- hey!â she exclaimed, looking down at her body. Ice began to form on her clothes, growing quickly into what looked like heavy plate armor from a museum. âWill⊠will this actually work?â she wondered aloud, looking at the heft and thickness of the ice, a beautiful pure white like snow. As she turned her head towards Elsa, she saw the same pattern weaving itself over Elsa. In moments, theyâd transformed into European knights in armor. âOkay⊠letâs hope this works. Here we go.â
Anna ran into the labyrinth of containers. Just as she turned a corner, a staccato burst of machine gun fire hit the edge of the container, sending sparks flying as she dove for cover. She felt a dull thump in her left arm and found the bullet lodged in the surface of the ice. Shock gave way to elation as she practically buzzed. âItâs working, Elsa! Itâs working!â
Elsa nodded and smiled, her eyes narrowed and her forehead wrinkled as she channeled more of her magic to reinforce and harden the ice further. The ice had stopped the bullet, but cracked slightly, so she pushed her power into the ice, making it more dense. The armor changed from white to a sky blue color. âWhere do we need to go?â she asked.
âThe container we care about is straight ahead, but I donât know how many bad guys there are between here and there. Jimâs video is still on even though heâs down and I counted at least 10 sets of boots running by⊠the odds kind of suck, not gonna lie.â Anna pulled two more magazines out of her backpack as her guts churned. She had enough ammunition to take down a couple dozen folks but only if every shot hit someone. And she couldnât let the bomb go off or get taken away, so waiting for backup wasnât an option.
As soon as she peeked around the corner of a container, a hailstorm of bullets struck the metal, more sparks and bullet fragments spraying everywhere. Two more bullets struck her ice armor, leaving tiny cracks that sealed up again immediately. âShit! Weâre pinned down here.â Anna reached under the icy helm and tapped her earpiece, opening communications to her command team. âHey Dusty, Iâve got eyes on the bad guys but Iâm pinned down. Probably 10 hostiles, and I think theyâve secured the bomb. Whatâs it looking like for backup?â
Her earpiece squawked to life, Mattiasâ voice loud and clear. âAnna, youâre all weâve got right now. Iâve got an ops team about 10 minutes away - thatâs the best I can do. See if you can hold them off and keep them from leaving until then, okay?â
Anna shook her head, grunting. âDusty, in 10 minutes Iâm going to be a smear on the ground if I donât get some help. Ten to-â she looked over her shoulder, making a snap decision, âTen to one odds really suck, you know?â She tapped her earpiece to mute her microphone. Elsa arched an eyebrow as Anna spoke.
âWhy didnât you tell him-â Elsa started.
âBecause weâre a covert government agency, and if they get wind of your powers, theyâre going to want to study you like an animal in a zoo, and⊠Iâm not ready to lose you just yet. So⊠we do this quietly, okay?â Anna clasped Elsaâs shoulder.
Elsa smiled. âSo much for sending an army of heavily armed snow golems, then.â
âYou can do that?â Anna squeaked, before flinching as another round of bullets clattered off the container door.
Elsa gave a faint smile. âOkay. I think I know a way we can do this that wonât give away my secret. Donât move, okay?â Annaâs nod was the confirmation she needed and she raised her hands to the sky. In moments, a cold wind began to blow through the cargo containers, the metal behemoths creaking as the temperature plummeted. Clouds gathered overhead, blotting out the sun, and fat flakes of snow began to fall.
Even inside her armor, Anna began to shiver. She couldnât see a thing; the snow was so dense and driving that it obscured her vision. Smiling inside her icy helm, she realized their attackers were probably in much worse shape; while snow in Boston wasnât uncommon, blizzards with subzero temperatures certainly were. âElsa!â she shouted to be heard over the driving wind, âI donât know how many of my team is still alive, so donât kill anyone, okay?â
Snow fell faster and harder, now up to her knees, before Anna realized Elsa was no longer beside her. Anna shook her head; Elsaâs powers were astonishing, and if she was honest with herself, a tiny bit frightening. She started to trudge forward towards the container with the bomb when the snow suddenly stopped and the air cleared.
Anna gasped at the sight. All along the walk, attackers wielding machine guns were frozen solid, encased in ice and unconscious, their lips blue. Their guns were pointed at the ground; however Elsa had done it, they didnât even have time to react. She counted at least 15 enemy soldiers in various states of suspended animation; their bodies reminded her of the exhibit at the Museum of Science about Pompeii, the final victims frozen in place forever.
âTheyâre alive,â Elsa murmured, her eyes closed as she pulled her magic back, the snow rising into the air and floating away. âTheyâre just very cold right now. One of your team is still alive, around the corner. He was bleeding heavily from a wound to his leg, so I froze him as well. That should buy some time to get him to a doctor.â She sighed heavily and opened her eyes, an azure glow slowly fading from them.
âH-how long will the ice hold?â Anna practically whispered, her eyes fixed on the statues as she caught her breath.
âAn hour at least. Plenty of time for your coworkers to get here and help us.â
They stepped forward to the container they were looking for and found Timmy, the junior-most member of Annaâs team, sagged against the container wall, gasping for breath. The door hinges of the container appeared to have been totally shattered by gunfire. âAâŠanna,â the young man wheezed, spit and blood flecking an absurdly thin goatee. âTimer⊠ticking⊠three minutesâŠâ he struggled to say before passing out. Elsa knelt down beside him, laying him down as his blood coated her hands.
âHeâs been shot, Anna, in the stomach. Iâll- Iâll see what I can do.â She touched the wound and encased the soldier in ice, chilling his body into induced hypothermia, and dragged him out of the container.
âElsa⊠we have a bigger problem,â Anna choked. âLook.â She pointed at the bomb container, which had been opened up by the attackers. Inside was what looked like a giant glass hourglass filled with a swirling green liquid. Several bullets had hit the casing around the glass, including the computer that presumably controlled it, and on the small green screen next to the bomb, a clock was counting down. Two minutes, thirty-five seconds to go.
âOh fuck me sideways,â Anna spat, tapping her earpiece again as Elsaâs head whipped around. âDusty, you there?â
âFive by five, Anna. Are you okay? We had some strange readings and the cameras on the perimeter got knocked out for a bit, but weâre back online. None of the cameras inside are working, Iâm guessing the bad guys shot them out. Whatâs your status?â came Mattiasâ voice.
âIâm okay, we got 15 bad guys down, 2 of ours wounded, 3 down, and a really big fucking problem, Dusty. The bombâs armed, and itâs got two and a half minutes to go. How soon is that backup going to be here, and please tell me bomb disposalâs with them,â her voice shook as she vomited out her words, her eyes fixed on the displayâs numbers. She felt a cool hand slip into hers and squeezed it for strength.
The long sigh Anna heard on the other end of the line nauseated her. She knew what he was about to say. âFuck, Anna. Bomb disposalâs on the way but thereâs no way theyâll get to you in time. Weâre fucked. Once that thing detonates, itâs going to create a lethal cloud of whateverâs inside.â Mattiasâ voice lamented.
Anna could hear him yelling excitedly in the background before he came back on comms. âAnna - what does it look like?â
âLike a giant green margarita from hell!â she shouted, seeing the timer hit the two minute mark. â120 seconds left.â Drops of sweat began to bead on her forehead. Not yet, please god, not yet. I havenât said goodbye to Elsa yet. Please give me one more chance, she prayed silently.
Mattias came back on. âOkay, Doc Pabbie says itâs probably VX gas, so itâs not going to burn, just make a giant cloud of mist from a shockwave blast. He says if you have incendiaries - thermite grenades, that might be enough to incinerate it as is. Itâll fry once it hits 2700 degrees, so if you have thermite, use them all.â
Anna gulped. âDusty, I donât have squat except for my pistol, and the container walls look like swiss cheese from the gunfight, so I canât even close the door.â
âFuck,â sighed Mattias. âAll right, get out of there if you can. Shit. Weâre going to need to evacuate whoever we-â
âWhat about extreme cold?â Elsa asked Anna quietly.
âWhoâs that?â Mattias practically shouted into Annaâs ear.
âUh⊠a vigilante showed up⊠uhh⊠dressed like Killer Frost,â Anna said, cringing at the cheesy reference that she came up with on the spot. âWhat about extreme cold, Dusty?â
âWhoâs Kill-â
âDUSTY! Sixty seconds on the clock. Extreme cold, yes or no?â she shouted.
âI- let me check-â
Anna muted her mic and turned to Elsa, her eyes wide with panic. âThereâs no time. Freeze the shit out of it, baby. Cold as you can make it, and surround it in as much ice as you can.â
Elsa reached forward with her hands and a beam of brilliant white light shot from her palms, hitting the glass container. Ice crystals immediately began to form on it as the swirling inside began to slow. Waves of cold pulsed from the glass, causing vapor to condense into fog and slowly fall to the floor. Icicles began to form on the ceiling of the metal container. Elsa strained, grunting, and the swirling inside the glass stopped completely. âAnnaâŠâ she gasped, feeling her powers beginning to weaken as she poured all of herself into the beam of frost, â⊠get back.â
Anna ran out of the container as ice crystallized around the hourglass, beginning to obscure it. She mentally counted down in her head as the air around her grew thinner and colder, her breath easily visible now.
Three.
Elsa cried out, her powers casting a blinding blue-white light.
Two.
The sound of ice forming, crackling. It reminded Anna of the sound of glaciers calving on a Netflix documentary sheâd fallen asleep to once, in her wifeâs arms.
One.
Anna wasnât sure if she imagined it or could actually hear the bomb beeping as it counted down.
She closed her eyes and shivered. Elsa, she thought, not even sure which Elsa she was thinking of, I love you.
Zero.
Authorâs Notes
Sorry not sorry for the cliffhanger.
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Chapter 10: Show Yourself
Summary:
Look how happy we are in this picture, she thought to herself. Anna had her eyes half-lidded as Elsa was slipping the ring on her finger, but both were smiling and didn't have a trace of stress or anxiety in their body language or faces. A sudden thought hit her like a bolt of lightning. When did I start thinking about this Anna and me... together as 'we'?
Chapter Text
Chapter 10: Show Yourself
The bombâs firing mechanism was little more than a tiny Rube Goldberg machine of chemicals and electricity. The timer went off, connecting a circuit between the clock and a wire. The wire sent a current to a small primer, which would catch fire, igniting a secondary charge. That charge would burn hot enough and fast enough to set off a concussive bomb - not heat (which would destroy the chemical), just impact, blowing the nerve gas into a giant, lethal cloud that would cling to the ground, killing everyone it touched.
But instead, the spark landed on the primer which was more than one hundred degrees below zero, and⊠nothing happened. The spark fizzled out. The bomb simply sat idle.
And time restarted. Elsa stopped casting her magic, staring at the giant ice cube inside the shipping container. She turned to face Anna. âIs that it-â
And she was promptly slammed into the wall as Anna threw herself at her, simultaneously laughing and crying and plastering Elsa with kisses. She tapped her earpieces off as her arms pulled Elsa against her body and she cried out. âElsa! I thought Iâd lost you. I thought we were going to die, I swear to god!â
For her part, Elsa embraced Anna just as fiercely. âI wasnât going to let you get hurt, Anna. I wasnât going to let you die. I love you too much to let you go, for any reason. Iâm done with letting things go.â She dispelled their ice armor so she could rub her hands down Annaâs spine and feel Annaâs cheek next to hers.
As tears ran down Annaâs cheeks, her earpiece chimed. She tapped it. âAnna! Cold should work. If you can get it below -51 Celsius, that will work!â Mattias shouted.
Anna managed to laugh, cry, and scoff all at the same time, sounding like a pig with hiccups. âWe made it, Dusty! Iâm okay, Iâm alive. The bombâs safe. Weâre going to need EOD to get rid of it, and we need medics here stat. Jimâs down for sure, Timmyâs in bad shape.â
âYou got it, Anna. Teams will be there in 2-3 minutes. Great work, come on in for debrief,â Mattias cheered, the relief in his voice evident. Anna could hear the rest of the team clapping and whistling in the background.
âElsa,â Anna murmured, letting go of the woman for a moment, âAs much as I want you here in my arms, my colleagues are on their way and I need âKiller Frostâ the mysterious vigilante to vanish, so they donât catch you, okay?â
Elsa nodded. âI understand. Iâll⊠Iâll meet you at home?â
âI wouldnât miss it. I donât know how long my debriefing⊠my report will be, but Iâll bring home something to eat, okay?â Anna smiled, her whole body trembling as the adrenaline rush began to wear off.
She watched as the incredible woman sprinted away from the scene of the incident, reflecting on all that had just happened. What had started out as a guilty confession for using her connections to SITC had turned into a demonstration of the most unbelievable powers and capabilities sheâd ever seen. None of the cases sheâd worked over the years had ever shown that kind of paranormal skill that Elsa had exhibited. Snow golems? Freezing a bomb so cold that it couldnât detonate? Putting people into cryogenic stasis without thousands of dollars of support equipment?
Anna shook her head as sirens wailed in the distance, slowly approaching her location. Elsa was⊠something else. And based on last night and how we woke up this morning⊠sheâs my something else, I think. She smiled to herself at the thought.
Mattias sat back in the conference room chair. âWell, Anna, thatâs one hell of an adventure for a Friday afternoon. And you still have no idea who this Killer Frost was?â
Anna shook her head as she stood at the end of the long table. âNo, but I shit you not sir, she was dressed like the character from the CW TV show, head to toe icy blue armor, white hair, the works. Whatever technology she was using, it was advanced as hell. Looked practically like magic,â she said, struggling mightily to keep a straight face, her fingers twitching behind her back as she stood at ease.
âMan, I wouldnât mind having her on our side on a more permanent basis. That kind of technology could make all our missions a hell of a lot easier. Still,â he stood up, smiling warmly at her, a hand gently laid on her shoulder, âYou did it. You more or less single-handedly saved the entire city. Doc Pabbie said there was enough VX gas there to kill everyone in a 20 mile radius easily, and the winds werenât in our favor today. Iâll be putting you in for an Intelligence Star, and whatever kind of promotion or bonus I can squeeze the beancounters for.â
Anna felt her cheeks warm at the praise as she stood up straighter. âThank you, sir.â
âNot that I need to tell you, but take the rest of the day off. Weâll start running down the leads on the soldiers you captured and see who theyâre working for. Itâs not every day you get to save the lives of a million people,â Mattias grinned broadly, his teeth a brilliant white in contrast to his darker skin.
âLetâs hope itâs not every day!â Anna called as she headed out of the room to her desk, practically bouncing.
Elsa stood perfectly still at her dresser in the bedroom, looking at the wedding photo. Her thumb gently brushed the cool metal frame, her stillness belying the swirl of emotions inside her.
The craziness of the day made it such that she wasnât sure what she felt, save that she was feeling it all at once. After sheâd gotten home, the adrenaline crash hit her like an avalanche, and she lay in the doorway of the apartment for half an hour shaking. Once sheâd pulled herself together, she went to the bedroom to change clothes, and ended up staring at the dresser.
Look how happy we are in this picture, she thought to herself. Anna had her eyes half-lidded as Elsa was slipping the ring on her finger, but both were smiling and didnât have a trace of stress or anxiety in their body language or faces. A sudden thought hit her like a bolt of lightning. When did I start thinking about this Anna and me⊠together as âweâ?
Confusion made her feel light-headed, as though she were adrift in the ocean. Am I in love with Anna? She thought back to the events of the day. Waking up after making out with Anna the previous night. Running into her at the office downtown. The closeness in the coffee shop. Pride swelling inside her as she put ice armor over Anna to keep her safe. Anger channeled outwards into a blizzard at the men who dared attack her Anna. Listen to yourself, Elsa. âYour Annaâ. Not your sister, your Anna.
And the terrible, gut-wrenching fear when Anna panicked at seeing the bomb and the certain death it was to bring. The expression on Annaâs face as she faced her own death broke Elsaâs heart, a mix of regret, sadness, and love all at once. She knew herself well enough after her coronation debacle to know that her emotions dictated the strength of her powers. Love thawed, but fear froze, and she poured all of her fears about losing Anna into the bomb. The ice practically called out to her with its song, colder than anything sheâd ever created before.
When the bomb failed to go off, all her fears were made manifest in the cold around the deadly weapon, leaving a vacuum in her heart. The moment Anna hugged her, love flooded over her like the breaking of a dam, and at that moment Elsa knew, beyond doubt.
Iâm in love with Anna.
She sat down on the bed abruptly as her mouth tried out those words.
âIâm⊠in love with Anna,â she whispered, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.
âIâm in love with Anna.â The words demanded to be heard, to be said, bubbling up from her chest, her voice gaining strength.
Warmth and happiness tingled at her toes, at her fingers, all over her. The truth surged through her like a lightning bolt. âIâm in love with Anna!â she exclaimed.
She flopped back on the bed, giggling at herself, surrounding herself in the blankets that had Annaâs scent and inhaling deeply. She wanted to capture every moment, every detail of how she felt, how Anna made her feel. The lengths they would go to save each other. Elsa hugged the pillow on Annaâs side of the bed, holding it tight as she closed her eyes.
Whether minutes or hours passed by, she didnât know, but the sound of the front door slamming closed woke her.
âHey baby!â Annaâs voice echoed from the front hall, along with the sounds of crinkling paper bags, âIâm home and I brought some food with me!â
Elsa sleepily wandered into the hall to find Anna with her arms full of a large brown paper sack, along with her usual work stuff. The rich smell of exotic foreign foods wafted in the air, rousing her from sleepâs embrace. âMmm, Anna, that smells divine. What is it?â
âYouâll see,â Anna laughed, taking the bag to the kitchen and opening it up. She pulled out carton after carton of food, each in little white boxes, nearly a dozen. âLetâs see, we have⊠shrimp fried rice, pork lo mein, some wonton soup, crab rangoons, beef and broccoli, General Tsoâs chicken, and some ma po tofu.â
Elsa tilted her head as she continued to sniff the different aromas. âI donât recognize any of those dishes - what cuisine is this, anyway?â
âThis is American Chinese food!â
âWhat⊠does that mean?â
Anna smiled. âIt means itâs Chinese-inspired or themed food, but distinctly American in origin. Most of these dishes you wouldnât find looking like this if you went to China. Take this,â she indicated, opening up a carton of General Tsoâs chicken, âThis is named after a Chinese general who lived⊠actually, at the same time as you, now that I think about it. But neither he nor anyone he knew would have ever eaten food that looks like this. See this broccoli?â
âThatâs Sicilian broccoli! It arrived in Arendelle about a hundred years ago, according to historical records, from travelers from whatâs known as the Kingdom of Two Sicilies today. I mean, my today, not your today.â
âWait, you mean Italy?â
âWhatâs Italy?â
Anna dug out her phone and after two minutes of Googling realized that Italy as she knew it in the modern era wouldnât exist for Elsa for another 29 years. âWow⊠this time thing still messes with my head even after almost a week,â she grinned. âAnyway! China didnât have Italian- Sicilian broccoli back in your time, so this dish is purely an American invention. Which, since itâs fried chicken in a sugary sauce, is totally an American thing to do anyway.â
Elsa took a tentative bite of the sweet, crunchy chicken and looked at Anna, her eyes wide. âWhat⊠thatâs so bizarre, Anna! Itâs like a dessert and an entree at the same time!â
âIsnât it good? Itâs one of my favorites. So bad for you, but so delicious,â Anna commented, taking another piece straight out of the carton with her fingers. âLet me get some beer to go with this magnificent feast.â
After consuming an unhealthy amount of the Chinese food and several beers while sitting on the floor of the living room, Anna turned on the TV. Their escapades made the evening news after a fashion, with the broadcaster commenting on the unusual, short burst of winter weather in the middle of April.
âHey ElsaâŠâ Anna asked, turning down the TV volume as the blonde looked her way. âHow big could that storm have gotten, if youâd really wanted to go all out?â Sheâd been wondering since Elsa had first demonstrated her powers in the alleyway. Just how strong is this woman?
Elsa looked down at her hands for a brief moment, remembering her coronation, her face heating slightly with shame at her memories, even still. âI could have put everything within a hundred miles into a deep, enduring winter in minutes. The harbor, frozen over. Feet of snow, icy cold weather, crops destroyed. I- Iâve done it before, by accident.â
âYour coronation. I remember you told me about that a few days ago.â Anna mulled over the possibilities. If Elsa was going to stick around⊠there were some situations where her skills could definitely be useful. She idly picked up a fortune cookie, cracking it open and pulling out the fortune inside.
âWhat⊠is that?â Elsa asked, staring at the tiny slip of paper and grateful for the subject change. âYou put paper in your pastries?â
Anna chuckled. âIt- itâs a long story. But these cookies have fortunes in them, little quotes and quips and stuff. Here, this one says,â she pauses to orient it the correct way, âLove can last a lifetime, if you want it to. Well, thatâs certainly poetic and appropriate, given the circumstances. Whatâs yours say?â
Elsa followed Annaâs lead, removing the cookie from the plastic wrapping and snapping it in half to reveal the scrap of paper inside. She read it to herself quietly, her cheeks turning red. âAhem. Do⊠do you have to read these things aloud?â
âNo, you donât have to⊠here, let me see it.â She reached over, and Elsa dodged her hands, pulling the fortune close to her chest. Anna grinned toothily, accepting the challenge, and chased Elsa around the coffee table, over the armchair, around the kitchen, and finally managed to tackle her onto the couch.
Giggling gave way to pregnant pauses as Elsa looked into Annaâs teal eyes, seeing the tiny crowâs feet around her eyes as she smiled. Elsa slowly reached a hand up, gently clasping the back of Annaâs head and pulling her down into a soft kiss.
Elsa deepened the kiss, pressing her lips against Annaâs, threading her fingers through her rich auburn hair, flecked with just the barest hints of silver as she savored Annaâs body resting atop her, warmth surrounding her. She murmured something quietly.
âWhat was that, baby?â Anna asked, propping herself up on one arm.
âI⊠Iâm telling you,â Elsa whispered.
âTelling me what?â
Elsa wordlessly handed the fortune to her.
âYou⊠you really mean it, Elsa?â she asked softly after a few moments, tears pooling in her eyes as she cupped Elsaâs cheek.
Elsaâs lips trembled as she nodded.
In a sudden rush, Anna embraced Elsa as though she were a life preserver in the roughest seas, clinging onto her for dear life as she shuddered with sobs of happiness.
The fortune fluttered gently to the floor, printed side up.
âIf you love someone, tell them before itâs too lateâ
Authorâs Notes
A nice fluffy break.
I didnât realize just how fragmented Italyâs history was until I started reading up on this story. The country we know as Italy is a relatively new invention.
General Zuo Zongtang was a real person, known for his military exploits. He lived from 1812-1885, so he was contemporaneous with the canon Frozen period, though his military renown began after Frozen II, in 1850. The dish named in his honor was created in 1952 by Chinese chef Peng Chang-Kuei, and was served in the 1970s, and the general would never have had any dish like it back in the 1800s in China. Fried chicken is definitely an American thing.
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Chapter 11: Playing Tourist
Summary:
Anna sighed heavily. "I... all right. I just... I'm not ready, Elsa. I feel like I've just gotten to know you, really, and there..." She paused to catch her breath and suppress her tears. "There's still so much more I want to experience with you."
Chapter Text
Chapter 11: Playing Tourist
How fast things change, Elsa thought, laying in bed as Annaâs arm lay over her midsection. A few days ago, I wasnât sure I wanted Anna holding onto me, especially since she sleeps in the nude, and now I canât abide the thought of being without her touching me. She rolled over to watch Anna sleep, the womanâs breathing soft and deep.
Elsa chuckled quietly; this Anna was a decade older than hers but still drooled in her sleep, her hair still a wild, tangled mane. She gently smoothed a bit of Annaâs hair, memories of the previous evening drifting through her mind like little origami sailboats leisurely floating on a pond.
Anna kissing her on the couch.
Anna exploring her body, rough, callused hands everywhere.
Anna making love to her.
Elsa moved to lay on her back, staring at the ceiling, wondering how she could have changed so much, so fast. Was I always in love with Anna? Not this Anna, but my sister? Is that possible? Is that why this was so easy and carefree? She idly drew circles on her own belly with her fingertips, retracing the memory of Annaâs fingers as she stared at the ceiling, contemplating their relationship. This was her first experience of any kind with physical intimacy. Sheâd never felt much of a calling to her own body for most of her life; for her formative years, she feared it and her powers more than anything, and even after her coronation and awakening, she never longed for much more than the sororal affection her Anna shared with her.
This Anna⊠this Anna brought her to places sheâd never expected to go in her entire lifetime, and more importantly, she hadnât lost control of her powers at all, even at the apex of her orgasms. The thought brought a smile to her face. Love really does thaw, I suppose.
Anna rolled over to face Elsa, dragging the blankets with her and snoring like a warthog before coughing herself awake. âHey baby,â she murmured, sleepily hugging Elsa and basking in the warmth of her love once more. She captured one of Elsaâs hands and slowly traced figure eights around the knuckles with her thumb. Anna savored the feeling of Elsa not only next to her, but intimately close to her again.
She hadnât been entirely forthright with this Elsa about her marriage. Some days she woke wondering whether her Elsa actually loved her, or just loved the idea of being in love. Their last fight before all the chaos of the past week was whether Elsa even wanted to be a partner at the firm or not; Anna was pushing to have her wife evaluate whether she wanted to make partner because the work was more rewarding, or she just wanted the title, was in love with the idea of being a partner. Their fight ended up with Elsa working late, and the next morning⊠sheâd vanished, replaced by this Elsa.
A dark thought drifted through her waking consciousness. Only a few days ago, she was wishing for her Elsa back, but after yesterday⊠after last night⊠she asked herself how sheâd feel if this arrangement were permanent, if this Elsa was stuck in this time period, and⊠she didnât hate the idea. In fact, theyâd had more spark, more flame than sheâd had with her Elsa in months, maybe even years. If this Elsa became her Elsa, she could live with that.
And that thought made her throat tight and her stomach churn, guilt swirling inside her. This⊠circumstance, wasnât the way things were supposed to be. Good or bad, her Elsa belonged with her, and this Elsa belonged back in Arendelle in 1845. Somehow, things had to be made right again, even if it meant possibly breaking her heart once more.
Anna stuffed her ruminations back into her subconscious like an uncomfortable shirt gets shoved to the back of a drawer, and craned her neck to kiss Elsa on the nose. She cleared her throat. âHey baby, did you sleep well?â
Elsa smiled with pinked cheeks. âI did, yes. I was⊠very tired after last night.â
âI bet,â Anna giggled. âYou were⊠amazing.â
Elsa scoffed through her grin. âI had no idea what I was doing. It was you that was amazing, Anna.â She slowly sat up and winced. âIâm okay. Just⊠sore in places Iâve never been sore before,â she offered before Anna could worry about her. The slightest bit of dizziness washed over her, but passed quickly.
âYou look a little pale, baby. Letâs get some breakfast in you,â Anna soothed, rolling out of bed and tossing an extra long t-shirt on.
Over a breakfast of crepes and fruit, Elsa had expressed a desire to see a few of the cityâs sights; for her, seeing anything outside of Arendelle was a treat. Her status as both monarch and magic user meant that she never left the capital much, and certainly not unattended to just freely wander around. Anna grabbed half a loaf of stale bread and practically dragged her out the door with her enthusiasm at playing tourist, starting with the Boston Public Garden, a large park in the middle of downtown.
An hour later, they walked into the lush verdant landscape, starting at the Swan Boats, a popular tourist attraction in which visitors sit in long paddle boats with plastic swan decor as tour guides slowly guide them around the pond, narrating much of Bostonâs history. The two sat in the front row of six benches on the boat, as far away from the guide as possible so they could speak without being overheard. Elsa took great delight in nudging Anna any time the tour guide was referring to events that were contemporaneous for her. The City of Boston had legislated its first survey to build the Public Gardens in 1842, completing it 20 years later.
As they drifted along, Anna wrapped an arm around Elsaâs shoulders and leaned her head against the blonde, breathing in her scent. She snuggled against Elsa as fully as she could, hip to hip, thigh to thigh, and laced her fingers with Elsaâs.
Elsa turned her head and gently kissed Annaâs hair. âItâs funny, in my time, we could never be so publicly affectionate,â she murmured. âAll of Scandinavia is fairly religious. Arendelleâs more progressive than our neighbors, but still⊠itâs nice to be able to be this free. And itâs not just⊠because we are women. Everyoneâs that restrained.â
âKind of like a Disney movie, huh?â Anna joked before realizing the reference was totally lost on Elsa.
Elsa closed her eyes, thinking of the bishop at her coronation. As reigning monarch, she was also the head of the church in Arendelle, and her word was as though spoken by the Lord himself. Sheâd had to dismiss that bishop after heâd insinuated that her powers were in some way unholy, banishing him from the kingdom. She shivered, remembering the harsh whispers heâd spoken behind her back, accusing her of witchcraft and being in league with the Devil. She could only imagine his invective if heâd also known his monarch preferred the company of a woman.
âHey⊠are you okay, baby?â Anna interrupted, feeling the air around Elsa get measurably colder for a moment. She sat up and pressed two fingers gently against the side of Elsaâs jaw, guiding her head forward and pressing their lips together. Elsa sighed happily in response, deepening the kiss and relaxing into Annaâs warm embrace, the sun overhead and fresh air easing away her painful memories.
A few brash honks by the white swans swimming nearby stirred them from their embrace, only to see the swans doing just as much necking as they were. Anna laughed and pulled out her phone, taking a selfie of the two of them. âHere, Elsa. Hand me your phone and Iâll take one for you too,â she grinned. They made a series of silly faces for the camera, ending with Elsa hamming it up by kissing Anna full on the lips, a finger hooked under her jaw.
Anna glanced at the preview images on the phone, nostalgia and affection swirling in her chest. This is how we used to be, she thought, wondering if her Elsa could be like this again with her. She leaned against Elsa again, trying to hide her watery eyes in the blondeâs shoulder.
A few minutes later, they sat at the edge of the shallow pond, unwrapping the stale bread Anna had put in her backpack. Without prompting, several of the white swans began to swim over, recognizing the food the women offered. Anna giggled as one of the swans began to eat bits of bread straight from her hand. âYou know,â she murmured, looking around the pondâs edge before settling her eyes on the swans in front of her, âIt wasnât far from here.â
âWhat wasnât?â
âWhere we got married. On the river itself, on a small riverboat. It was a beautiful day, warm and sunny, with a breeze just like this one to keep the humidity at bay. I felt⊠it was so perfect, Elsa, like out of a storybook.â Anna tossed another small piece of bread into the murky water, watching as several swans jostled to seize it in their bright orange beaks. âDo⊠you think it will be like that again?â she said softly, watching the swans.
Elsa turned to look at her, one eyebrow arched just slightly. âWhat do you mean again, Anna?â
Anna blushed. âIf⊠this is the way things have to be. You, here, with me. I⊠it kind of feels that way again, the way it did with my Elsa in the beginning. AndâŠâ she choked up, âand I donât want to squander that feeling or rush it. I⊠I was in too much of a rush the first time.â
âYou meanâŠâ Elsa covered Annaâs hand with her own, pressing it gently into Annaâs thigh, âGetting married again, sort of?â
âThe whole thing, really. New love. Deep love. Engagement. Marriage. MaybeâŠâ she looked down at her lap, hesitant to look into Elsaâs eyes for a moment before exhaling a deep breath, âMaybe even having kids?â The earnest, hopeful look on her face screamed louder than any words, her eyes wide and pupils dilated.
âIâm certainly not opposed to trying, in whatever form that takes, Anna,â she replied, squeezing Annaâs hand. She tried to imagine what that would entail, remembering how gleeful Anna was - her Anna - as a child, always doting on her big sister.
And then squeezing it harder, no longer conveying affection, but discomfort.
âElsa? What is it?â
A wave of nausea passed over Elsa and she wrapped her free arm around her midsection, clutching her stomach as the knuckles in Annaâs hand went white from the strength of her grip. âI- somethingâs not right, Anna.â
At that moment, Annaâs phone chimed. She rolled her eyes and fished the phone out of her pocket, swiping it open with her thumb and putting it to her ear. Elsa gripped her hand harder, waiting for the raft of sensations to pass, as she listened to Anna mostly grunt and acknowledge the caller on the other end with single word responses. Within a few moments, Anna disconnected the call and looked at Elsa, her forehead creased and her skin a shade more pale.
Before she could say anything, Elsa interrupted, taking a deep breath to steady herself. âIâm going to guess thereâs a strange phenomenon in the sky?â
âHow- how did you know that, Elsa? Were you able to hear the conversation with Dusty?â she asked, bewildered.
âIâve felt these sensations before.â Elsa looked towards the sky, scanning the clear blue for signs of the aurora. âThey were⊠they preceded the red aurora, Anna.â Inside, she practically screamed to herself. No, not yet! I havenât had enough time here yet! I just want a little while longer with this Anna.
Annaâs stricken expression indicated she had about the same line of thought, a feeling like her stomach was filled with rocks. âHow⊠how long do we have, Elsa?â she bemoaned quietly, turning to look at the afternoon sun reflecting on the pond.
âI donât know⊠not long enough, Anna,â she cupped Annaâs cheek gently. âNot nearly long enough. Days at most, but probably less. The sensation is much stronger this time. AndâŠâ she looked into teal eyes in front of her, âIâm not ready to go. I love you, Anna. I donât want to let go of you,â she murmured, a tear running down her cheek.
âThen letâs make the most of it, my love,â Anna pulled her to her feet as she scrubbed the tears from her own cheeks and let out a shaky giggle. âSamurai Express?â
Elsa shook her head. âI finally got used to this phone and all these âappsâ on it, and I found one nearby called No. 9 Park. It looks interesting- French food and a good wine list. What do you think?â she smiled at Anna, who had turned another shade paler. âWh- did I say something wrong?â
Anna shook her head vigorously, her twin plaits almost smacking her in the face. âNo, no! It- I- justâŠâ her shoulders heaved as she caught her breath. âYou have no idea how long Iâve been hinting to my Elsa that I wanted her to take me there for dinner.â She snuggled and reached out, pulling Elsa into a tight embrace. âItâs not fair, Elsa! How is it fair that youâre better than she is and you have to go?â
âAnna, Iâm⊠Iâm not better than she is. Iâm not, I really- weâre different people, and weâve only known each other for a week. Itâs been an amazing week, and I love you so incredibly much, but⊠Iâm not better. Iâm not. Different, but not better.â Elsa stood up and brushed herself off. âCome on. Letâs get some dinner, try out this place, and see what happens, all right?â
A few minutes later, they were seated at a small table in the corner of what was effectively an apartmentâs living room. No. 9 Park was a fancy French restaurant tucked inside a brownstone townhouse on Boston Common, the large park in the heart of the city. Massive, nearly floor-to-ceiling windows gave diners a chance to watch passersby on the steep, narrow streets. The dining room they were seated in was that casually wealthy look - nothing gaudy or ostentatious, but everything felt subtly expensive. The table linens were smooth and pure white; the crystal chandeliers overhead were tasteful, but a quick look at the crystal and one would recognize the old European handiwork - and price tag.
Anna sat down in the corner chair at the table, cringing inwards slightly. âElsa⊠this place is so expensive! Like, look at the forks! Theyâre all fancy and stuff,â she whispered across the table.
Elsa laughed, covering her mouth with her hand. Compared to Samurai Express, this restaurant was much more comfortable for her. A European-style restaurant was familiar territory, and her posture reflected her comfort. âAnna, itâs just a casual dinner. There arenât even fish knives out.â She looked at the table setting, which in her time would have been an exceptionally casual meal, a salad fork and a dinner fork on one side, a single dinner knife and soup spoon on the other. At the palace, a formal dinner would have no fewer than 5 forks, 4 knives, 4 spoons, and 5 glasses at each place setting.
âWhatâs a fish knife?â
âItâs⊠a knife⊠you use for your fish course.â Elsa wondered whether the lack of decorum was a modern thing or an American thing. Who doesnât have a fish knife and fork for a fish course?
She picked up the menu and browsed through the options, a pleasant warmth settling over her. This was just like home; prix fixe menus didnât need individual prices on everything, so the menu was simply a list of what food was to be served. It reminded her of the beautifully handwritten menus Kai made for dinners, his unique calligraphy and even the occasional illustrations setting the tone for her meals with Anna.
Elsa paused, forgetting the menu in hand. What was happening with her Anna? As much as she felt intense romantic attraction to this Anna in the modern day, she worried for her sister. A thought struck her - what if she wasnât just gone from her time, but this worldâs Elsa was in Arendelle? Annaâs hand touching her forearm startled her out of her reverie.
âElsa! Are you okay?â
âI- yes, I am. How are you?â she asked, smiling softly.
Anna blushed slightly. âIâm honestly a little out of my element here. We donât do fancy very much and thereâs so much to choose from.â She looked down at her menu, biting her lip. âAnd Iâm not sure what half the words mean on here.â
Elsa scooted her chair a little closer to Anna, feeling the subtle warmth of their forearms next to each other. âOkay, which words?â
The redhead pointed at one of the first course items, a red snapper crudo.
âCrudo? Thatâs raw in Tuscan - your Italian. Didnât you learn languages in school?â
âNo?â Anna shook her head, looking at Elsa as though sheâd just asked if Anna had learned to throw axes in school.
âYou⊠really? Papa hired tutors to make sure we could speak all the languages of the day - French, of course, because thatâs the language of diplomacy. Tuscan, English. Arendelle is a sovereign principality, but we all learn Danish and German; itâs what our neighboring nations speak.â
âWow,â Anna said, her eyes slightly wider as though starstruck. âImagine speaking all those languages. So⊠what about this? Bavette?â
âHmm. Itâs French for bib. Iâm not familiar with the word Wagyu, though. Perhaps we could ask the steward?â
Anna raised her hand halfway, and the server glided over nearly silently.
âHow may I help you, miss?â
Anna pointed to her menu. âWhatâs a wagyu bavette?â
The server, a middle-aged man dressed in a tuxedo and sporting a closely trimmed mustache, cocked his head briefly as he evaluated his patrons. âAh, thatâs a Wagyu flank steak, miss. Seared on cast iron, with a reduced au jus and caramelized onions, along with an organic heirloom potato latke.â
âOoh, I love a good steak. Iâll have that and, uhâŠthe tagliatelle,â Anna said, practically drooling. Sheâd wanted to go to No. 9 Park ever since sheâd seen a special about it on the local television station about unusual restaurants in Boston, and a restaurant inside an apartment building fit the bill. Of the two, Anna was definitely more adventurous, and having met this Elsa from another world, she wondered if it was something constant in the universe. This Elsa, she mused as she watched her order dinner, was certainly less adventurous because of all the trauma sheâd suffered in life thus far.
âPenny for your thoughts?â Elsa interrupted with a slight grin tugging at the corner of her mouth.
Anna laughed, tossing her head back. âYou know that expression?â
âI do! Itâs been around for quite some time, it would seem. In fact-â
At that moment, the sommelier came over with a bottle of wine for Elsa to inspect. Anna watched her carefully as Elsa inspected the bottle of 2017 Terre Nere Etna Rosso, then swirled a sample the sommelier had poured in the glass. She watched the blonde sniff it, examine the glass, then take a small sip before nodding to the man, who proceeded to pour two glasses.
After he departed, Anna leaned over. âYou⊠uh, you know what youâre doing with wines? Tasting them, I mean?â
âYes, I had to learn years ago how to taste wines and judge their quality. Papa said sometimes more gets done in diplomacy over a bottle of wine than a battlefield,â she commented, her focus going soft as she remembered some of Agnarâs early lessons. Even as a young child, sheâd listened with rapt attention before her isolation about all the social graces and skills a monarch was expected to have, lessons that had continued even in her isolation, with tutors leaving books and instructions of every subject matter.
Anna took a sip of the wine and gasped. âOh wow! Thatâs⊠thatâs REALLY good, Elsa. Nice choice - how did you know? I mean, Iâm sure almost none of these brands were around when⊠you know, when. Way back when, I mean.â
Elsa giggled. âMama had a rule. Wine from Sicily, cheese from France, beer from Bavaria, chocolate from the Netherlands. This was one of the Sicilian wines I saw, so I picked it.â She took another sip from her glass and savored the rich flavor, bold with hints of leather and earthy notes, a touch of cherry and raspberry on the palate. Memories of tasting tiny thimble-fuls of wine left on her food tray outside her room during her isolation, along with textbooks on wine-making came back to her.
âMy Elsaâs parents I think may have done something similar,â Anna remarked, seeing the similarities between the two Elsas. âShe always picks the wines when we have them, whichâŠâ
â⊠hasnât been as often as it used to be?â Elsa reached across the table and took Annaâs hand. âI know my time left here is short, Anna. Promise me, when Iâm gone, that youâll talk - really talk - to your Elsa and find your love with her again? If sheâs anything like me, she canât do without it, and sheâd rather suffer in silence than be without you.â
Anna sighed heavily. âI⊠all right. I just⊠Iâm not ready, Elsa. I feel like Iâve just gotten to know you, really, and thereâŠâ She paused to catch her breath and suppress her tears. âThereâs still so much more I want to experience with you.â
âSo do I, Anna.â She rubbed small circles across Annaâs knuckles as the food arrived.
âHow can I be in love with both of you? I donât⊠I donât know whatâs real any more. Why does it feel like weâre⊠I donât know, like youâre dying or something?â Anna pleaded as they walked through the Boston Public Garden, the moon casting an ethereal blue glow over the sky as the old time gas lanterns lit the walkways. Anna gripped Elsaâs hand firmly, as though afraid she would simply vanish into thin air at any moment.
Theyâd finished the dinner at No. 9 Park, savoring every bite of the amazing meal. Anna had insisted on taking photos of all her food to commemorate how amazing it was, and Elsa had managed to sneak a word in with the server about it being a special occasion, earning Anna an extra chocolate torte for dessert.
âIâm probably going back to Arendelle, which means your Elsa will probably be back soon. And you did promise over dinnerâŠâ
âI know. And I will, Elsa. Iâll make it work again with her. She deserves it-â
âAnd so do you, Anna. You deserve to be loved as much as I love you, all the time.â She paused in the middle of the walkway to kiss her and hold her close. âYou deserve the world, Anna. No matter which world Iâm in.â
Authorâs Notes
Weâre closing in on the end of the modern arc, but I wanted to give the girls one last romantic dinner together.
Fun fact: Norwegian as a language is relatively new; during the canon period of Frozen/Frozen II, the official language was Dansk Norsk - Danish. And at the time, present-day Germany was a series of kingdoms; Bavaria (where Munich is located) was more or less an independent state, part of the German Zollverein customs union of 1834.
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Chapter 12: Flash Back
Summary:
âBut I would have you!â Anna cried. âThat would be⊠that could be enough. For me.â She surged forward, wrapping her arms around Elsaâs torso and pressing her face into the blondeâs stomach. âYouâre enough for me, Elsa.â
Chapter Text
Chapter 12: Flash Back
Elsa woke first the next morning, a sense of foreboding making her restless. A stray gust of wind blew into their apartment from the open windows, and on it she swore she caught a scent of lily of the valley, reminding her of Arendelle briefly. She turned her head to see a waterfall of red hair, interwoven with a few strands of grey, spilling over her shoulder and chest, Annaâs warm cheek nestled against her breast.
In the distance, she could almost feel the gravitational pull of the red aurora, as though it had invisible strings wrapped around her, gently tugging on her very soul. How she wished she could stay for just a little longer, a few more days, just long enough to sort out all her feelings about this world, this reality, this Anna.
Sheâd binge-watched a few science fiction shows on Annaâs TV during the week that talked about alternate realities and time travel, to better try to understand what had happened, but most were superbly unhelpful, if entertaining.
The best sheâd managed to understand was that potentially there were an infinite number of worlds and with technology or magic, it might be somehow possible to travel between them. Elsa still wasnât sure how much of what was on the television was fact or fiction; Anna had warned her that everything probably looked lifelike, but some things were - to Annaâs discerning eye - faked somehow. Elsa wasnât sure how that was possible; everything and everyone looked astonishingly lifelike.
Several different shows had people portrayed with powers similar to hers. One showed a man who could make long ice paths to figure skate on at high speeds; another she looked up after the fight at the docks to see who Anna was referring to - a person named Killer Frost who could absorb heat from her environment. It certainly had given her additional ideas of things she could do with her magic, and she chuckled to herself at how funny it would be to show the creators of those programs what real magic looked like.
She paused her idle speculation to run her fingers through Annaâs soft, silken hair, eliciting a gentle snore from the woman and a giggle from herself. She wove a comb made of ice into existence and slowly began to tame Annaâs wild mane as the older woman stirred from her slumber, relishing in the sensation of their naked bodies pressed together.
âElsaaa⊠itâs too early to be up on a Saturday,â she mumbled, struggling to force the words out of her mouth as she groped for her smartphone on the nightstand, seeing that it was barely 11 AM.
âIt probably is,â Elsa gave a lopsided smile, contentment tinged with sadness tugging at her mouth. She caressed Annaâs cheek with a cool palm as the redhead rolled over, propping herself up on her elbows.
âWhat is it, Elsa?â
âI think⊠todayâs the day. I- I donât know how I know, but itâs⊠just a feeling.â
Anna nodded, her eyes watering. âI had a feeling, too. Listen, Dusty texted me to come in this morning to look at what theyâve found. Why donât you come with me? Maybe theyâve discovered something⊠some kind of explanation, or, or-â or some way to keep you here, she thought to herself, staring longingly at the blonde and wishing she could hold onto her forever. âEither way, I donât want to leave without you⊠in case I donât get to say goodbye.â
âAnna,â Elsa sighed, kissing her hairline, âWe both know I donât really belong here, even though Iâd like to stay with you longer. If⊠if itâs time for me to go home, then thatâs what I should do. My kingdom needs me.â Her mind flashed back to earlier in the week, remembering the absence of Arendelle entirely from historical record.
Anna choked back a sob. âCan⊠maybe I can come with you? Just for a little while?â
âAs much as I would love to show you my home, you donât belong there any more than I belong here. Also,â a wry grin appeared on her face, âyou would hate it there. No electricity, no Internet, no movies or invisible butlersâŠâ
âBut I would have you!â Anna cried. âThat would be⊠that could be enough. For me.â She surged forward, wrapping her arms around Elsaâs torso and pressing her face into the blondeâs stomach. âYouâre enough for me, Elsa.â
Elsa combed her fingers through Annaâs hair. âIâm sorry, my love. Whatever happens has to happen. I donât even know how I got here, much less be able to take you with me, and⊠what if there were no way for you to get back? That would hurt your Elsa so much, if you were forever gone. So⊠letâs do as you said, and visit your office to see what your magical scientists and experts have found.â
Since it was a Saturday morning, both women threw on yoga pants and hoodies, grabbed their respective bags and backpacks, and got on the inbound train for downtown. Anna clutched onto Elsaâs hand and upper arm as though she might float away at any moment, pressing a kiss into her cheek every other minute. For her part, Elsa rubbed her thumb across Annaâs fingers and returned the soft kisses, snuggling into her as much as she could.
Elsa drank in every last sight, trying to commit as much as possible to memory. This magical world⊠sheâd try to remember as much as she could, bring what knowledge she could back to Arendelle and perhaps use it somehow to give her people a path forward.
After exiting at the Back Bay station, they walked up the stairs to Copley Square, the bright spring sunshine momentarily blinding them. Trinity Churchâs facade greeted them, one of the oldest churches in Boston; it wouldnât be built for Elsa for another 35 years in her time. On the grassy green common in front of the church, food trucks and stands served passersby as the city came to life, merchants barking their wares in heavily accented English.
Elsa smiled to herself as she walked hand in hand with Anna towards one of the trucks; the scene was similar to Arendelleâs market district. The same shouts for business, the same kinds of merchants. She mused how much had changed and yet how much was a constant of humanity, that even 177 years later, she could still get around in the world.
After Anna purchased two bĂĄnh mĂŹ sandwiches from the Bon Me food truck, they sat down on one of the stone benches near her office to eat. âIâŠâ she started, a strangled laugh coming from her, âItâs funny, my coworker has a sign in her cubicle that I always thought was cheesy, but I actually understand it now. It says, âDonât cry because itâs over, smile because it happenedâ. Thatâs how I feel about this week.â
âI will, in fairness, probably do both,â Elsa remarked as she chewed, delighted in yet another interesting new cuisine to try, this time from a relatively new nation in her time, ÄáșĄi Nam. The taste of pulled pork and pickled vegetables made her taste buds practically dance. âMeeting you has been one of the most exceptional things that has ever happened to me, Anna. I donât regret a moment of it, and I would do it again in a heartbeat.â
âSo would I. And yes, I remember what I promised you last night at dinner. Whatever happens, if my Elsa comes back to me⊠Iâll try. Who knows, maybe she will have changed, too.â Anna grinned, wondering once more what might have happened to her Elsa. Sheâd speculated all week once she knew the truth, but no explanation seemed particularly plausible. Sheâd just have to wait it out and see what happened, but if her Elsa did come back to her, she was committed to making her marriage work again.
âIf todayâs the day⊠what do you think youâll do first when you get back?â Anna offered hesitantly, staring at her sandwich.
Elsa finished chewing her bite. âHonestly? I will probably take a bath. No offense at all to you or your Elsa, but the bathtubs here are a mockery of what a bath is supposed to be like. The shower is brilliant, and Iâm going to have one of our engineers figure out how to make that work but⊠your bathtubs are barely deep enough to wash your legs, much less soak in them,â she laughed.
âHey! Stinker. After all my hospitality, thatâs what you have to say about my bathroom?â Anna shouted in mock outrage.
âArendelle has none of the modern conveniences of this world, but we do have baths that allow you to sit in water up to your shoulders,â Elsa said, matching Annaâs silliness by turning her nose up and away. She resumed her normal posture and looked at her own sandwich for a long moment before turning back to Anna. âWhat⊠what do you think youâll do first when your Elsa comes back?â
Anna didnât even have to think. âTell her the truth. About everything.â She briefly glanced in the direction of her office. âThis week⊠with you here, with the honesty and the openness⊠I want more of that. I want that with her, the way I had it with you. I want- I need to be as direct with her as I am with you, to tell her what I want and what Iâm more than willing to give.â
Elsa nodded. âThat would be a fine start, I think. After having lived her life for a week, it seems like youâre the only refuge she has from the tensions and perils of work. Dealing with people like Hans - err, Jay - is soul-crushing. Believe me, I speak from experience. So⊠you telling her the truth might mean sheâll know she can trust you with everything as well,â she smiled, a cool hand on Annaâs shoulder.
Anna shivered in the cool April breeze; the sunshine theyâd been enjoying had vanished on her, leaving only the chilling wind.
She looked up from her sandwich to see Elsaâs eyes wide, staring at the darkening sky, then turned her head skyward. Above them, dark clouds swirled, heralding one of Bostonâs tempestuous storms. At that moment, her phone blared its emergency alarm loudly and her screen lit up.
GET TO OFFICE RN - DM
âElsa, Dustyâs just sent out an alert. We should get over to-â For a moment, she thought the sun had come back out, as the area was awash in golden light. She glanced at Elsa to see the woman transfixed, staring at the sky as the brilliant light illuminated her features, making her look angelic. Anna couldnât help herself and took a quick photo of her before looking up at the sky.
And Anna nearly dropped her phone. Above them raged what looked like the eye of a hurricane, but instead of clouds and rain, golden lightning surged and arced in a circle. The lightning seemed to pulse and race around the perimeter of the storm; Anna imagined this was what it must look like to fly an airplane through a tornado or something equally insane.
Elsa watched the lightning loops spinning faster and faster, like a blizzard made of topaz electricity. She was mesmerized; when the aurora surged over Arendelle, she was too stunned to note any of the details. This time, she watched as time seemed to slow to a crawl, and the majesty of the phenomenon revealed itself to her. A bolt of lightning almost the color of her hair seemed to race out of the clouds towards her, and for the briefest moment, she thought it was shaped like a man.
Her sandwich, half-eaten, fell to the surface of the bench with no one to hold it any longer.
Authorâs Notes
This is the end of the modern arc. When we next meet, it will be back in Arendelle.
For the super nerds, speculate why the original aurora was red and this one was gold. Itâs not an important part of the story, nor will we touch on the mechanics of the storm any more, but there is kind of a fun logic to it.
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Chapter 13: Back in Time
Summary:
And she pointed straight at Elsa, snarling.
"Guards! The imposter has escaped the dungeons! Seize her!"
Chapter Text
Chapter 13: Back in Time
The first thing Elsa noticed was that she could barely see, it was so dark. But she could feel, and the surroundings were all too familiar.
Cold. Damp. Metal. Stone.
She held up her hands to see manacles and chains on them, flecks of dried blood covering the edges - though they were only on her wrists, not the whole-hand imprisonments that Hans had placed on her the last time she was here.
In the palace dungeons.
She looked around for any clues or hints as to why she had appeared here. A few trays of spoiled food were piled up in the corner. She wrinkled her nose at the smell of rancid fish and moldy potatoes. Was the other Annaâs Elsa here somehow? Out the window, the moon shone over the harbor, sparkling in the night. A few ships remained docked at the piers. Nothing was frozen, which was an improvement over the last time she was in this particular cell, though she half expected Hans to walk through the door again.
She sighed, the memories of her last incarceration washing over her. How scared she had been, how little she had known her own power and what she was capable of. She had struggled so mightily to escape her chains the last time, blasting a hole in the wall with her unfocused, untrained powers. With the smallest giggle, she closed her eyes and grew crystals of ice between the chain links. Within seconds, the metal gave way, shattering like glass into rough chunks of iron on the floor.
Elsa rubbed her wrists and walked over to the heavy wooden door. She touched a finger to the lock and ice filled the mechanism, moving it to the proper position and setting the latch free. She grimaced as the heavy iron hinges creaked a bit, but no one seemed to be paying much attention. In fact, no one was around at all. I suppose Iâll need to have words with the warden to have someone properly on guard duty when we have actual prisoners in here, she smiled to herself.
The halls of the palace were dark; she had no idea what time it was save that it was clearly late in the evening, past midnight. Some of the palace staff were active until around midnight, preparing for the next dayâs activities, and she heard no bustling of any kind.
Elsa made her way quietly to her chambers, walking the halls by memory to avoid waking anyone. She opened the door, wondering if Anna were inside, but the room was dark and cool. She lifted her palm, a large snowflake casting a soft blue light into the room, and she could see everything as sheâd left it. The armchairs by the large triangular window, the fireplace, the vaulted ceilings - everything looked immaculate. In fact, she noted, the bed was perfectly made and there hadnât been a fire in the hearth for days; all the ashes were cold and nearly odorless.
Once sheâd oriented herself, sheâd realized all her belongings were still on her; the other worldâs Elsaâs yoga pants, hoodie, sneakers, and backpack were taken with her by the aurora. She gently smacked her forehead with her palm; her favorite maroon nightgown was left in the other world. With a start, she laid the backpack down on the bed and opened it, then trembled as her fingers shook.
The other Elsaâs iPhone and solar power pack were inside.
She had a moment of panic, the room spinning slightly. What was she going to do with this? She knew she had to hide it, conceal it before anyone knew it existed. With a sigh of relief, she remembered the lockbox in her antechamber. She picked up the 21st century technology and clothing and placed it inside, locked it, and then used her ice to destroy the key utterly, leaving it a series of tiny metal shards on her desk. Now, only a skilled lockpick or her powers could easily open the chest and its dangerous contents. No one could know about this just yet; the contents of the device were too dangerous.
Not that she would expect many more people other than Anna, Kai, or Gerda to be in her chambers anyway, but additional caution was warranted for the moment. Sheâd have to figure things out tomorrow. For now, she was exhausted and needed a good nightâs sleep in her own bed.
I wish Anna were here to keep me warm, she thought with a wry grin. She presumed her Anna - her sister - was just down the hall in her chambers but it was much too late to wake her, nor was she in any frame of mind to try explaining what had just happened. Instead, she pulled the duvet aside and climbed into bed.
Her last conscious thought before falling asleep was that Annaâs 21st century memory foam mattress was much more comfortable.
The next morning, she shed a quiet tear as she woke alone, missing Annaâs arm across her stomach as sheâd found it almost every morning for the past week. She sat up, scrubbed her eyes, and looked at her room in the morning sun. A thin layer of dust had built up on some of the surfaces; she wondered why the staff hadnât been through to do their usual cleaning. It was almost as if her chambers had been closed off for a funeral, the way Agnar and Idunaâs chambers had been closed off for years after their deaths by the palace staff. She half wondered if her portrait in the hall was draped in black cloth.
Elsa looked at her wardrobe before deciding to cast an outfit out of ice, something sheâd not done as much while she had been⊠away. She thought of some of the uniforms sheâd seen during her travels and with a wave of her fingers, she covered her body in a pale blue jacket and dress, with a split cape and ice boots to match. Not quite as severe as the real military outfits sheâd experienced in the future, but a far cry from the ice ballroom gown sheâd made when she first unleashed her powers and a positive reminder of where sheâd been.
Down the hall, the longcase clock chimed nine times. Elsa took a deep breath, straightened her back, and left her chambers for the dining room, head held high. While the past week may have been a reprieve from her royal duties, she knew sheâd have to pick up where she left off - and with the comportment required of her.
Except⊠the staff, far from greeting her in their usual friendly way, appeared to be almost afraid of her. Chambermaids and laundresses seemed to recoil from her, bowing hesitantly and whispering to each other. A butler dropped a tray with a loud clatter on the ground before turning and running down the hall heâd emerged from, scrambling away from her as fast as he possibly could.
What is happening here? What happened while I was away? Maybe they do think I was dead! she wondered. She summoned her magic, ready to deal with whatever threat presented itself to her as she reached the dining room doors.
Elsa breathed a sigh of relief as she entered the dining room. There, at her usual spot on the right from the Queenâs chair sat her sister, chewing on a piece of toast with smoked salmon and sipping a cup of coffee. Anna even appeared to be reading some papers, which Elsa found intensely amusing, as Anna had never expressed much interest in crown affairs.
Speaking of which⊠she spotted the crocus tiara in Annaâs hair. Had Elsa simply vanished, and Anna was forced to take on the mantle of leadership while she was in that other world? Perhaps thatâs why her quarters had been untouched - maybe Anna thought she had died instead of vanished into the future.
She smiled and cleared her throat. âAnna-â she started, and then everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Anna turned to look, and first her eyes opened wide. Then her brow furrowed. She turned and stood up.
And she pointed straight at Elsa, snarling.
âGuards! The imposter has escaped the dungeons! Seize her!â
Elsa turned to see two of the palace Royal Guards, dressed in their forest green uniforms, wielding halberds and charging towards her. Instinctively, she stomped her foot on the wooden floor and ice cascaded across it, turning the entire room into a skating rink in the blink of an eye. The guards immediately fell face first, their halberds sliding across the floor, blades lodging in the wall harmlessly.
Whispers of âItâs really her!â, âThe Queen!â, and âSheâs alive!â of the castle staff behind her reached Elsaâs ears. Elsa waved her hands and slammed the doors shut with an icy gust of wind. She turned to face her sister, eyebrows arched, hands in front of her in case someone else tried to challenge her. âAnna! What in the world is going on? Whatâs the meaning of this?â
For her part, Anna looked close to tears. âElsa? Is⊠is it really you?â she mumbled as she clutched onto the high back of the wooden chair, shaking, but not from the cold.
Elsa nodded, relaxed her shoulders, and held out her arms as the ice on the floor retreated back into her. âItâs me, Anna. Really me. What⊠what happened?â
Anna surged forward, embracing Elsa and crying into her shoulder, tucking her chin into the crook of her sisterâs neck. âI⊠I thought Iâd lost you, that you were gone forever, replaced by that⊠that imposter!â
âImposter? Anna, what imposter? What are you talking about?â She pulled out her chair and sat down at the table as a steward hurried out a second plate of breakfast. After taking a few bites and smiling at the familiar flavors, she reached a hand across the corner of the table, resting it lightly on Annaâs. âTell me what happened, Anna.â
Anna took a deep breath and placed her hands on the table. âOkay⊠this is probably going to sound crazy, but it really happened. Iâm not making it up, and it wasnât a dream, okay?â With a silent nod from her sister, she pressed on. âA week ago now, you vanished. One moment I was running for the stairs to get Master Hansteen about that⊠red aurora, that storm. The next thing I knew, you were gone, and⊠this person who looked a lot like you was laying asleep on what was left of the balcony.â
âAndâŠâ Anna shifted her eyes to look around the room, âshe was completely naked!â she hissed. âCan you believe that? Impersonating the Queen AND being so immodest?â Anna blushed at just the memory of the incident, how the imposter had been sprawled out across the floor, as though she were simply lounging there like some common prostitute.
âSo what did you do?â
âThe only thing I could do. I screamed for help, the guards came, and I had her put in the dungeons until I could figure things out.â Anna rested her face in her hands. âIt⊠it was so crazy, sis. The woman kept saying these crazy things, like her name was Elsa too, she was from the future, she was a lawyer, we would be in so much trouble.â
Elsa struggled to suppress a giggle and almost succeeded.
âYou⊠you think Iâm crazy, donât you?â Anna sighed. âI promise, it really happened. You can ask Kai and Gerda abo-â
âI believe you, Anna. I believe you completely,â Elsa reassured, patting her sisterâs hand. âI have absolutely no doubt in my mind that someone else who was a lot like me was here, probably about 10 years older than me. And you kept her in the dungeon the whole time?â
Anna nodded. âFor a good amount of the time, anyway. How did you know?â
âThatâs where I woke up last night when I reappeared,â Elsa grinned. âChained to the wall. Whatever that storm did, that Elsa and I switched places, so if she was in the dungeon when it came through again, thatâs where I ended up. I was waiting for Hans to peek his head in and tell me he was trying to steal the kingdom again.â
âNot on my watch,â Anna scoffed. âAs far as Iâve heard, heâs still shoveling horseshit, doing his penance on LĂŠsĂž Island. Speaking of watchesâŠâ she removed the crocus tiara from her hair, âThis thing belongs on your head, not mine, dear sister. Shakespeare wasnât kidding when he said uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.â Immediately, Annaâs shoulders rose as though an invisible weight was lifted from her back. For her part, Elsa adjusted the tiara slightly but bore its gravity as she always did, with grace and ramrod straight posture.
After they finished breakfast, the sisters walked outside to the courtyard gardens. Word had spread of Elsaâs return, and the castle staff once again greeted her cordially, bowing and curtseying along the way. Anna had wanted to go for a walk up to the terraced gardens to clear her head.
âPenny for your thoughts?â Elsa asked with a wry grin as they walked hand in hand, admiring the cherry and pear blossoms. Her sisterâs hand was warm and much softer than the other Annaâs, she mused idly.
âNot much else besides the imposter and you vanishing, really. I- I canât say just how overjoyed I am to have you, the real you, back. You didnât miss a whole lot - the Jansens have finally resolved their water rights issues, and I had to run open court this week. I⊠I managed to run the kingdom, but I didnât enjoy it particularly much, sis.â Anna shook her head as she sat down on a bench underneath an apple tree, Elsa sitting beside her. âSo, tell me⊠tell me more about what happened to you?â
Elsa took a deep breath and squeezed Annaâs hand. âI was gone⊠I was gone for a week to⊠to another world. A world like this one, but in the future, in America of all places. And in that future⊠I was married to you. Well, the Elsa of that world - the one who apparently came here, Iâm guessing - was married to the Anna of that world.â
âYeah, she mentioned being married⊠oh my God, wait, were they sisters? Thatâs⊠that must have been one crazy, mixed up world!â Anna gasped, her hand covering her mouth in shock. She briefly contemplated what it would be like to be married to her sister, equal parts fascinated and revolted.
âNo, they werenât sisters. It was so different - that worldâs Anna was so much like you but also still a different, unique personâŠâ Over the span of a few hours, Elsa recounted nearly everything that had happened to her in the week sheâd spent in 2022, omitting only the intimacy sheâd shared with that Anna. She wasnât ready to have that particular conversation with her sister just yet, especially given Annaâs reaction earlier at the thought of the married Elsa and Anna possibly being sisters.
âWhoa. That⊠that is some story. And it makes sense, too. The⊠imposter? I guess she was real, just not you after all⊠she said some weird, weird stuff,â Anna chuckled.
Elsa arched an eyebrow. âLike what?â
Anna laughed. âSit down, and let me tell you all about herâŠâ
Authorâs Notes
Weâre back in Arendelle! We will see future Elsa and future Anna once more in the epilogue. Their story is mostly done, but we will see what happens with them. Theyâre not forgotten.
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Chapter 14: Days of Future Past
Summary:
She turned over, her chains rattling as she tucked an arm under her head. *Anna, I miss you so much*, she thought as a tear quietly trickled down her cheek and sleep finally came.
Chapter Text
Chapter 14: Days of Future Past
Arendelle, 1845
Thirty-four year old Elsa Beck, junior partner at Klein & Gabler, tugged futilely at the heavy chains lashing her to the floor. âLet me out of here! I swear to God, the moment you let me have my phone call, I am calling the senior partners at my law firm, and you are going to be sued out of existence!â she shouted at the unhearing grey stone walls.
Elsa strugged for a few moments more against the chains before collapsing on the stone bench built into the dungeon walls, the coarse woolen dress she was given chafing every part of her body. âSomeone! Anyone! Please! Let me out of here, I donât know what Iâve done!â she wailed, curling up on the cold stone.
Whether it was minutes or hours that had passed, she couldnât tell, but eventually the heavy wooden door creaked open, and two armored guards entered, both carrying some kind of club. They stood like faceless golems on opposite sides of the door as another person entered, carrying a candlelit lantern and wrapped in a hooded cloak. The shadowy figure nodded, and both guards filed out of the room, taking position on the other side of the door as the figure gently closed it.
Elsa backed away as far as the chains would let her, almost to the window. Whatever this bizarre freakshow cosplay thing was, she wanted no part of it, especially since it seemed⊠almost real. The dungeon was real, actual, heavy stone. The chains were real, heavy metal that bruised her wrists. Was she about to be murdered in some bizarre cult sacrifice? Was that why everyone had these crazy weapons and some hooded psycho was walking towards her? She fell to her knees, quiet tears running down her cheeks.
âForklar dig selv,â came the ominous voice from the hooded figure.
Except⊠it wasnât ominous. In fact⊠it was familiar. Very familiar.
âAnna?â she looked up, her eyes wide. At first glance, it was indeed her wife, and she surged to her feet, running forward and clumsily embracing the redhead as best as she could while chained to the floor. âAnna, thank the heavens you came to get me!â She planted a kiss on her wifeâs lips.
Before she knew it, the woman who looked like her wife had shoved her so forcefully that she fell backwards, arching her back in pain as the chains coiled up under her spine, bruising her badly. She shrieked as the irons battered her ribs and back.
âHvem tror du, du narre?â the woman asked before cocking her head, realizing that her prisoner was speaking English. âI donât know who you think you are, posing as my sister, the Queen no less, but you will answer for your crimes,â the redhead spat as she stabbed her finger at the supine blonde. âI will give you one chance to make this right. Tell me where my sister is!â
âI donât understand whatâs going on!â Elsa clambered to her knees, her joints aching. Sheâd already spent one night in this forsaken place, and sleeping on a stone bench was a far cry from the bed sheâd fallen asleep in last night. âPlease, you have to believe me. My name is Elsa Beck. Iâm 34 years old, Iâm an American citizen. Please, if you just contact the American embassy, they can verify who I am, please, Anna!â
Anna pulled down the hood on her cloak, scowling at the prisoner. âFirst of all, thatâs not how you pronounce my name, imposter. Second of all-â she held the lantern close to Elsaâs face, taking note that she did indeed appear much older than her sister, âYou still havenât told me where my sister is or what you did with her. And just as a point of clarification, Arendelle has no formal diplomatic relations with your United States, not that I believe you. Other than the occasional traveling arms salesman, no one from America views us as important enough to warrant a diplomatic mission.â
âI donât know where your sister is, or even who your sister is, I promise you!â Elsa sobbed, clawing at the air. âWh- whatâs her name? I mean, I donât know if Iâd know her, but-â
Anna drew herself up to her full height, straightening her back and tilting her chin up. âMy sister is Queen Elsa of Arendelle, first of her name, sovereign of Arendelle and its principalities, head of the Arendellian Church, Supreme Commander of the Armies and Navies of Arendelle. And you mysteriously appeared at the same time she vanished, so⊠where is she?â
Elsa curled up into the fetal position on the damp, cold stone floor, arms wrapped as tightly around herself as she could manage with the chains around her wrists. She squeezed her eyes closed, tears running down her cheeks. âI donât know⊠please, Anna, I donât know where this queen of yours is. Itâs only me, okay? Itâs just me⊠youâre supposed to love me, youâre my wife⊠Iâm sorry⊠I donât know where she is⊠I didnât do thisâŠâ her voice tapered off.
Annaâs heart ached, watching this doppelganger of her sister lay on the floor, bereft. Could she be trusted? Was she telling the truth about who she was? She definitely looked older than her sister; Anna could make out wrinkles and blemishes her sister lacked. Earlier, when sheâd appeared magically without a stitch of clothing, Anna noticed that the woman had a tattoo on her lower back of a snowflake. It was like this woman was a distortion of her sister, some kind of creature out of a bad dream.
She left the imposter laying in her cell, quietly weeping, as the guards closed the heavy wooden door behind her. Anna turned to Kai, who had been waiting outside.
âAny word, Your Highness?â the portly chamberlain asked as he followed behind Anna.
âNothing useful. She says her name is Elsa, and sheâs a 34-year old woman from America,â Anna groused as they walked up the stairs to the palaceâs main level.
âDo you believe her?â
Anna slowly shook her head. âI donât know what to believe. She seems sincere enough, and her accent is definitely not from around here, but⊠it could be some kind of magical trick. She also didnât seem to understand anything I said in Danish, so sheâs at least not acting about that.â
Kai escorted Anna to the dining room, where the staff was laying out breakfast. Word had spread already of Elsaâs disappearance, and the table was set only for one. âPerhaps this is some other kind of magic, Your Highness?â
âMaybe. Hey, thatâs an idea. Letâs send a rider to the Valley of the Living Rock and ask Pabbie to come here. Maybe he can detect if thereâs some kind of sorcery at work!â Anna exclaimed as she tucked into her smoked salmon and scrambled egg on toast.
âRight away, Your Highness. Though, I must say, the kingdom cannot be without its Queen for very long. While I send for Pabbie, shall I also send for the Archbishop?â Kai asked gently, not wanting the implication to weigh too heavily on Anna.
Anna froze, dropping her fork with a loud clatter against the gold-trimmed china. Her appetite vanished instantly, as her chest tightened. It felt as though the room had run out of air for her to breathe. âN-not just yet, Kai. Not today. If⊠if we donât have any answers by tomorrow⊠then provisionally, yes. As long as we make that clear to Archbishop Hauge.â
The chamberlain nodded silently as he withdrew from the room, bowing. Anna stared at her plate, the taste of the food soured in her mouth as she wondered where her sister had been taken.
Elsa lay on the cold stone bench, shivering in the dark. She hated the cold generally, but this was an entirely new, painful experience for her. At least when she had been old at home, she had a blanket or a jacket or something handy. She thought briefly of her desk at the law firm. The guys had always kept the air conditioning cranked up too vigorously; in the dead of summer, sheâd be wearing a coat over her suit just to stay warm.
This? Sleeping on cold stone, no blankets or pillows or even a thin mattress was torture for her. She admitted to herself that sheâd had it pretty good in life. Her parents were reasonably well off, enough to put her through law school and in the first couple of years after law school, helped her with her apartment until she could stand on her own with Anna. Sure, sheâd had her fair share of uncomfortable experiences, but this was a new low.
She curled up tighter, the itchy, rough cloth of her dress doing nothing to keep her warm. A chilling breeze blew in from the windows, making her ache even more; during the day, she could see sail ships coming in and out of what looked to be a harbor of some kind. The lone candle that had been lit in the sconce on the wall for the evening meal had long burned out, taking away the last light and heat sheâd had. The previous night, sheâd tried squeezing up against the wall, hoping to stay warm that way, but the stone just sapped more of her body heat.
Anna. She was always warm in bed, like her personal space heater. She regretted not spending more time with her wife the last few years, working late almost every day. Sheâd come home around 9 PM each night, quickly shower, have a snack, and then sit on sofa with her laptop working until midnight. Then sheâd crawl into bed next to her wife, spoon her, and be up and out the door by 6 AM.
Elsa chided herself for her behavior. How foolish she was to take Anna for granted, to always assume sheâd be there for her, to love her, to take care of her, to keep her warm. And for what? A partnership at a law firm that probably didnât even notice she was missing, much less sending any help. A piece of paper telling her she owned a third of a business. Fat lot of good that paper would do her now even if she had it, trapped in a cell in some insane cosplay or third world country.
If I make it out of this alive, Iâm never going to take Anna for granted again, she vowed to herself. Right now, sheâd give almost anything just to have Anna in her arms for her warmth alone, not to mention someone to talk to. The guards - sheâd nicknamed them Hans and Frans - apparently didnât speak English at all, and she was left to talk to the walls.
She turned over, her chains rattling as she tucked an arm under her head. Anna, I miss you so much, she thought as a tear quietly trickled down her cheek and sleep finally came.
The sound of rolling rock echoed off the walls of the Great Hall as Grand Pabbie arrived the following day, answering the royal summons. The troll unfurled himself in front of the empty throne as Anna sat in the smaller chair to the right, the afternoon sun illuminating the rich, polished wooden floor.
âPrincess Anna,â the elder troll said simply, offering a thin smile.
âPabbie! Thank you for coming on such short notice!â Anna got up and rushed to the troll, taking his stone hands in hers. âSomething terrible has happened to Elsa, Pabbie, and I canât figure out what it possibly could be besides magic.â She explained in details everything she knew, from finding the imposter to the wild claims the imposter made. âI canât even be sure thatâs a person in there, Pabbie. Can you take a look?â
âThis does sound mystical in nature, Anna. Let us go have a look at this false Elsa and see what we can discover.â He looked around the room briefly. âBefore we go see this mysterious guest, let us go upstairs to where this puzzle started, hmm?â the living rock suggested.
Once to the balcony, which was still shattered from the lightning bolt, Pabbie closed his eyes and reached his hands out. âSomething⊠something else was here⊠a doorway⊠but to where?â he murmured, walking in a slow crescent around the damaged balcony. A soft yellow glow, like a disembodied candleâs flame, appeared in his stone palm as he circumnavigated the room. âYes⊠yes, very interesting. All right, Anna. Letâs go talk to this Elsa now.â
âWhat did you sense?â
âIt is too early to tell. There is definitely magic afoot, but we should meet with this Elsa before passing judgement.â
âOh, that reminds me⊠she only appears to speak English, just so you know. I can translate for you.â Anna walked down the central staircase with Pabbie, leading him towards the dungeons.
âThat wonât be necessary, Your Highness,â he smiled as they descended the steps.
A few minutes later, the door to the dungeon creaked open as Pabbie entered the cold stone cell with his guide light, to be greeted by an ear-piercing shriek.
âWHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?â Elsa screamed, scrambling backwards on her elbows as quickly as she could. She reached the end of the chains and pulled, the cuffs cutting into her wrists. âGet away from me! Whatever the fuck you are, get away from me, donât touch me!â
âYoung lady, please,â Pabbie practically cooed as though he were soothing a toddler. âThere is nothing to be afraid of.â He slowly reached out his hands, but made no move to step any further than the door as he turned to one of the guards. âEt andet lys, tak.â The guard nodded and brought in another candle, then lit it.
Elsa hyperventilated as she stared wide-eyed at the creature. It looked like⊠a rock. A giant, talking, moving, moss-covered rock with eyeballs and a mouth and hands and⊠whatever this dream was, it was getting weirder every single moment. A fleck of drool dripped down her chin as she struggled to bring her breathing under control. She looked to the food tray that had been left in her cell, but it was out of reach, and the wooden utensils would have no effect on the⊠talking rock⊠in front of her anyway.
âWh- what do you want?â
Pabbie smiled softly. âYou are Elsa?â
Elsa nodded wordlessly, still staring at the talking rock.
âMay I enter? I intend no harm, Elsa.â
Elsa had pulled herself to a seated position, hugging her knees close to her chest and resting her chin atop them, the chains dangling by her thighs. âI⊠suppose.â If this creature, whatever it was, intended her harm, there was little she could do about it anyway.
Pabbie waddled over to the trembling woman, holding out a hand. âPlease, Elsa. There is nothing to fear here. I was asked by Princess Anna to see if you were telling the truth, to ascertain where exactly you came from.â
âH-how does⊠how would a talking rock know whether or not I was telling the truth?â she squeaked, recoiling from his touch as though he could kill her in the blink of an eye.
Pabbie didnât respond, instead closing his eyes and laying a hand on Elsaâs shoulder, no more than a feather-light touch. She shuddered as the cool rock touched the woolen dress, but slowly settled when nothing painful happened.
After what seemed like hours, Pabbie withdrew his hand and opened his eyes, then stepped back to the door of the cell. He turned to Anna, keeping his eyes on Elsa. âShe speaks the truth, Your Highness. She is not from here, and while magic surrounds her, she has no magical abilities of her own.â
âIf sheâs not from here, where is she from?â Anna looked askance at the blonde.
âShe is not of this world, Your Highness. Not only is she from a different time, but from a different reality entirely. Where, I cannot say, only that I can feel she is not from here,â he intoned gravely. âShe is a person, however, and quite harmless. This is quite serious, Anna. It is entirely possible that whatever brought her here also took your sister, the Queen - and I cannot say whether or not it will even be possible for her to return. All I can say for certain is that this young lady has no ability to help or hinder us in our search for the Queen.â
Anna sighed, her shoulders slumping as she turned towards the door. What if her sister was lost to⊠time? Magic? Another world? This was the answer she feared, that there wasnât an answer at all. Her stomach dropped as though she herself were falling without end; while this wasnât talking to Elsaâs locked door, it was almost worse. Unbidden, she was reminded of the days after Kai and Gerda had come to her with the dreadful news about the loss of their parents. They too had simply vanished, never to be seen again.
Just as she started to walk out, she heard a small whimper behind her. This Elsa was standing up, wringing her hands. Just like my sister, she thought. âWhat is it?â she managed to avoid snapping at the woman.
Elsa looked down at the nearly untouched tray of food in her cell, long since cold. âUm⊠if itâs possible, do you have any food that isnât fish? I⊠uh⊠I really dislike fish.â
Anna barked a short, sharp laugh with a smile that didnât reach her eyes. âYouâre definitely not my sister. Sheâd eat pickled herring and smoked salmon for every meal.â A deep breath. âAll right. Iâll have something else sent down for your next meal.â
âThank you, um, Your Highness. I, uh, I donât know anything about where I am, but is there⊠is there a process for whatâs going to happen to me? A trial, a court hearing? Can I at least get my phone call?â Elsa hoped that wherever she was, she could plead her case. Junior partner or not at her firm, she was one of the best in her field of law; surely sheâd be able to defend herself.
Another sharp, bitter laugh from Anna. âYes, the Queen would typically hear all disputes and cases like this in open court. Unfortunately for you, you seem to have magically replaced her somehow, so thereâs no one currently available to hear your plea until she returns. And I donât know what a phone call is, or where we would get you one.â Anna turned on her heel and walked out, the guards closing the door behind her.
Elsa collapsed on the bench, holding her head in her hands as the chains rattled against the stone. She had to get out of here.
In retrospect, it was a mistake, but sheâd had to try. On the fourth day in her cell, the monarch took pity on her and had her unshackled that morning. After eating a meal of boiled potatoes - thankfully the fish hadnât made an appearance since sheâd asked - Elsa stood by the window, looking at the harbor.
In her mind, sheâd been keeping track of the guardsâ movements. At each meal, they changed shifts, and the midday meal guards were the most lax. When they brought in food and swapped out the bucket sheâd been using as a chamberpot, they left the door open the entire time, whereas the morning and evening guards closed it as they did their duties.
She had no idea where she was, other than a dungeon, but there must have been many ways in and out of whatever castle she was in. Sheâd watched enough Game of Thrones to know that there were always lots of passages and doors an in and out of any fortress or citadel. The guards were wearing heavy armor, so if she could just get by them, she was fairly certain she could run faster than they could, for longer.
It had been the same routine every meal for three days. One guard comes in, picks up the old tray. Second guard picks up the bucket. First guard comes back with a new meal. Second guard comes back with an empty bucket. They both turned left when they were outside her cell door. If she ran to the right, it might even be a few minutes before they noticed she was missing.
She had no plan for where she could go, but the harbor wasnât far. Maybe she could find someone, a regular person not involved in this crazy Renaissance Faire reenactment, and borrow their phone for a couple of minutes, just long enough to call Anna and beg her to send help. Despite all the evidence around her, she still couldnât believe that what this Anna had said was true, that she was on some other world. That was pure science fiction; more than likely, this was some elaborate ruse. Anna would help her, get her the hell out of here. All she had to do was get to a phone.
Elsa took a deep breath and counted as the second guard walked out and to the left with the bucket. As soon as he was out of the line of sight, she sprinted out of her cell and to the right, up a flight of stone stairs. Behind her, she heard shouting; the guards had already noticed her absence. At the top of the stairs, she found herself in a brightly colored hallway, with suits of armor along the walls and paintings of every kind on the magenta wallpaper. She looked around, frantic, and saw French doors at the end of the corridor.
As she barreled through the doors, Elsa found herself in a massive open courtyard, four huge fountains spraying water in the air. In the distance, the gates built into the heavy walls were open, and she made a break for them as fast as she could, the rough cobblestones biting into her feet. The sound of whistles and shouting echoed around the courtyard, and she knew she didnât have much time.
After the first few steps, Elsa fully realized her mistake. Running on rough cobblestones, even when youâre in excellent physical condition, is difficult when youâve never run on rough surfaces without shoes before in your life. She tried to move faster, but every step felt like she was walking on knives. By the time sheâd gotten halfway across the courtyard, she could see the guards in front of her lined up, massive axes in hand. Elsa looked over her shoulder to see Hans and Frans behind her, manacles at the ready.
She fell to her knees, her face in her hands, and sobbed as they dragged her back to the castle.
Anna trembled with the effort of suppressing her tears. She couldnât cry, not right now, not right here. There would be time for tears later. Right now, the kingdom needed her, especially after the spectacle of the imposter nearly escaping the castle. Arendelle needed a leader, someone to look to, whether she was ready or not.
She picked up the crocus scepter and orb in her hands as Archbishop Hauge read a passage from the holy book in Danish. The weight of the golden tiara on her head felt like it was made of lead and ten times its size. Kai, Gerda, and the castle staff that were available and free from their duties sat in the first two benches in the palace cathedral.
As the Archbishop finished, Anna turned to face the handful of people assembled. The archbishopâs voice echoed in the lonely, mostly empty cathedral, a far cry from the crowded, joyful ceremony two years ago for her sister. Pain stabbed at her heart, feeling the absence of her sister and her parents. Sheâd never felt more alone.
âQueen Anna of Arendelle.â
She gently lay the scepter and orb back on the teal pillow, her hands shaking. This was never supposed to happen. She was supposed to be at her sisterâs hand, forever the spare princess - right where she wanted to be. There should never have been a Queen Anna of Arendelle, because it meant the worst had happened - that Elsa had abandoned her again, voluntarily or not. No matter who the woman was in the dungeons, Anna knew she was truly alone again.
Despite her valiant efforts, a tear rolled down her cheek.
Authorâs Notes
This is the chapter everyone asked for. What was 2022 Elsa up to in the past? Now you know, and it probably wasnât what you were thinking it would be.
A reminder that Norwegian was not the spoken language during the canon period of Frozen; Danish and German were. Norwegian as we know it today wasnât the official language of Norway until 1905, so itâs likely Arendelle would have been about the same.
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Chapter 15: The Secret
Summary:
Anyway... you have to promise me you can keep this secret. No one must know at all. Not Kai, not Gerda, not Kristoff, not even Sven, all right?
Chapter Text
Chapter 15: The Secret
As Anna finished retelling the story of what had happened to the future Elsa, her sister's mouth dropped more and more in shock, the beauty of the courtyard gardens forgotten. While her own reception in the future by the other Anna got off to a rough start, she never imagined that the other Elsa would have such a traumatic experience of her own - and in Arendelle, no less, a place renowned for its friendliness.
"Does... Anna, does it bother you at all what happened to her? She was basically imprisoned for a week without any liberties whatsoever, just for being another version of me!" She hadn't put two and two together that arriving back in her own time to find herself in manacles would have been the situation her doppelgÀnger would have been in for the entire week.
"What? No! She was impersonating you. Remember what happened with Mary Baynton?" Anna practically shouted. Baynton had attempted to impersonate the daughter of England's King Henry VIII and sway public opinion that the king should be deposed in favor.
Elsa shook her head. "So you thought she was... going to try to take the throne of Arendelle? She was just a scared woman, Anna!"
Anna crossed her arms before her temper erupted, her eyes flashing. "So was I, Elsa! What about me? I was TERRIFIED that you were gone forever, that you vanished like Mama and Papa did!" She turned and pointed in the direction of the hills north of the city, golden in the setting sun's light. "I didn't want to have to walk back up that god-forsaken hill to put another memory stone next to theirs with your name on it! I thought you abandoned me again, and that I would have to do this all alone!" she shouted, her breath hot on Elsa's face. "Every night, Elsa. Every! Night! I wondered when I would have to make that walk again. I nearly threw Kai out of the palace the other morning when he brought me the stonecarver's name to start... start planning... yours," she choked.
"Anna, I- I'm sorry," she wrapped her sister in her arms as Anna lost any semblance of composure, weeping openly into Elsa's shoulder. Elsa threaded her fingers through Anna's hair as her shoulders heaved from her cries. "I won't leave you, Anna. I'll always find a way to come home to you." How she missed this Anna, her sister, the 'real' Anna to her. Her sense of humor was sharper, her soul less burdened, the light in her eyes brighter. Had it not been for the clothes and technology that she'd locked away in her chambers, Elsa could have dismissed her 'travels' as a particularly intense dream.
"It's okay, Elsa. I know... I know I probably should have handled that better. I mean, Pabbie had even said she was powerless but... I was so angry and scared that I blamed her. Mostly scared, you know? That you were gone and never coming back and... I'm sorry. I wish I could apologize to her, too. That Elsa," Anna sniffled.
"For what it's worth, I think that the future Anna will likely take good care of her. She had a traumatic week for sure, but it was only a week, and you certainly didn't do anything like torture her, right?"
Anna shook her head as her fingers trailed down Elsa's forearms. "No, though I did have to reprimand a guard because he just threw her food into her cell one of the days. I told him in no uncertain terms that we don't treat anyone like animals, even prisoners, and he's on stables cleanup duty for a while as a reminder."
"Good. Then she'll probably be fine. The other Anna is-" she stopped herself for a moment, choosing her words carefully as she pursed her lips. "Very kind and nurturing, so any harm that was done, I'm sure she'll eventually put behind her. We should, however, think about setting down some formal rules about how we handle prisoners on the very infrequent occasions we have them."
"You really did pick up that whole lawyer thing when you were away, didn't you?" Anna giggled through the remains of her tears. She tried to imagine her sister dressed in the fashion of the day appropriate for advocates, frock coats with straight trousers and tall hats. Her sister certainly had the posture and comportment of a barrister, but definitely not the fashion sense of one, what with her flowing ice dresses.
"Anyway, I'm so glad you're back," she sighed, holding Elsa's hands and tracing small figure eights over her knuckles.
At that moment, Elsa's stomach lurched slightly. Anna had moved her fingers in exactly the same way that the other Anna had, the morning after they had been intimate. Memories collided with the present, her body and her mind suddenly battling as she remembered how the other Anna had made her feel, then scolded herself for projecting that onto her sister. Finally, she managed to dislodge a few words from her throat as her cheeks pinked. "I- I'm glad to be back, too. It was... I missed you, Anna."
Try as she might, she couldn't completely dismiss the sensations and the memories; worse, she found herself staring at her sister's lips, wondering if they would feel the same as the Anna that had made love to her. What was happening to her? She quickly pressed her palms into her thighs and let her ice flow, the magic cooling down her body, helping to quell her physical arousal at her own memories.
"Elsa? Are you alright? You look a little flushed," Anna remarked, resting her palm on Elsa's shoulder. "Is something the matter?"
"N-no, nothing's the matter, Anna. It's just... I have to re-adjust after... after being away for so long." She reached up and covered Anna's hand with her own, before forgetting she'd just been using her powers.
"Elsa, your hand is freezing! What's going on?"
"I- nothing, I was just... seeing if... my powers still worked as they should," Elsa cringed.
Anna rolled her eyes before leveling her gaze at her sister. "Well, if there's one thing the future didn't change, you're still a terrible liar, Elsa. Come on, you know you can tell me anything, right?"
"I- I know. I know, Anna. It's just... on the one hand, I couldn't wait to get back, to you, to home. But on the other hand... it was a whole different, new world, Anna. There was so much to see, so much to learn, so much to experience that I'd probably never get the chance to again. And..." She stared down at her hands, rubbing them together slowly as though she were washing them in a sink that wasn't there.
"You're keeping something from me."
Elsa nodded, not able to meet her sister's eyes. "I- I am. I... let's go back to my chambers. We can't discuss it here."
They left the courtyard and walked up the circular stairs in the palace to the Royal chambers, nodding as they passed the various guards and stewards. Elsa signaled with a wave of her hand for two of the guards to follow them. At her doors, she turned them. "Please do not allow anyone to interrupt me. No one may enter." Both guards nodded, holding their halberds in front of them.
Once inside, Elsa locked the door, then froze it solid, before turning to face Anna, who had lit the oil lamps on the nightstands to stave off the evening's dark. "When the other version of me came here, what did she have with her?"
Anna snorted. "Literally nothing. She showed up without a stitch of clothing, which was... really awkward, I have to say. I mean, I remember when we were little, Mama and Papa would bathe us together but... it's been a long while since we did that together. I certainly wasn't expecting to see you - her - completely nude. That's how I knew she wasn't you right away, she had a tattoo on her back."
Elsa's cheeks pinked slightly as she pushed the thoughts of the other Anna unclothed away. "Mmm. Whatever the phenomenon is, it took me exactly as I was, and I suppose it did the same to her. I woke up in her bed wearing my magenta night robe, which I am very sad to say I forgot... in the future." She began to pace slowly, back and forth in front of the large poster bed.
Anna sat down on the corner of the bed, absent-mindedly rubbing the blue and white embroidered quilt with her fingers as she waited for Elsa to explain her line of thinking.
âAnd... what did you have her wearing when she vanished back to where she came from?â
âProbably the same thing she wore all week. I had a guard give her a basic woolen dress for decencyâs sake. You know, the funny thing is, she kept asking for underwear! I was like, eww, gross. No one wears underwear unless itâs strawberry days, you know?â
Elsa chuckled as she paused her pacing in front of Anna, putting a hand on her shoulder. âBelieve it or not, I had the same conversation in reverse with that Anna. She kept asking me why I wasnât wearing any! But in the future, they have these fantastical machines that wash clothes for you.â
âWhoa! Really? Thatâs amazing. Gerda would lose her mind over something like that for the staff.â Anna flopped back on the bed. âItâs a shame you didnât bring one of those machines back from the future, you know?â
At that remark, Elsa froze. She took a few deep breaths, then turned to face the door, hands outstretched, as she made a wall of ice nearly half a foot thick to completely block entry into the room as Anna sat up sharply, wondering what was going on.
âAnna... what if... what if I did?â she whispered.
âDid what?â
âWhat if I did bring back a machine from the future?â
Anna jumped to her knees, bouncing eagerly on the bed, her hands clenched in fists as she practically vibrated from excitement. âReally? Really, you did? How big is it? How many clothes can it wash at the same time?â
âWhat? No, not a clothes washer, Anna.â She pinched the bridge of her nose, bowing her head before looking up at her sister again. âA... a different kind of machine. A machine thatâs like... like a book but so much more.â
"Why does this sound like a bad thing, Elsa? Wouldn't something like that be... I don't know, awesome?"
"Because... because it could be used for very bad things. Could be taken advantage of. It... it could destroy Arendelle." Elsa sat down on the bed, trying to suppress the feeling of panic rising inside her like spoiled food in her stomach, her throat constricting to keep from vomiting.
"Hey... whatever it is, Elsa, it's going to be okay," Anna soothed, scooting next to her sister and putting an arm around her shoulder. "I know whatever this thing is, you're the best person in the whole world to take care of it. No one is as strong or as powerful or as good-hearted as you. Certainly not me."
Elsa leaned into her, burying her face momentarily in the crook of Anna's neck. She inhaled deeply; Anna's scent was different from the other's, but not a bad different. More musky, more earthy. She smiled slightly; the future Anna's scent was heavily influenced by having that wonderful shower and a wild assortment of perfumed soaps. She'd have to figure out how to replicate that amazing experience at some point, so Anna could indulge in the joy that was a hot shower.
She pulled away from her sister and clasped Anna's shoulders. "That's untrue, Anna. You are good-hearted, except when you're scared, and who can blame you? Anyway... you have to promise me you can keep this secret. No one must know at all. Not Kai, not Gerda, not Kristoff, not even Sven, all right?"
"Elsa, you're starting to scare me a little. What is it?"
"Promise me, Anna. Please."
Anna nodded slightly, swallowing the lump in her throat. "All right, I promise," she smiled, holding up her pinky finger. "Pinky promise, even."
Elsa gave a thin smile, then walked into the antechamber with Anna on her heels. She opened the bureau doors built into the wall, then pressed her finger against the locked strongbox. Tendrils of ice snaked into the lock and rotated the tumblers, a solid clunk of metal indicating it was open. She lifted the lid carefully, revealing clothes, a pair of sneakers, her 21st century iPhone, and a giant snowflake she'd cast, glowing bright blue-white light inside.
"What is that, Elsa? A piece of glass? A stone?" Anna blinked, looking at the unremarkable object. "It's so smooth and shiny, like a black mirror." She squinted at it, noticing the snowflake-themed box next to it with four glowing blue lights on it.
"This, Anna, is possibly the most dangerous machine in the world. It's like... it's like a book, except that it holds many, many books and other information." She lifted up the phone and unlocked it with Face ID, then showed Anna the home screen.
Anna gasped. "It's... it's magical! It's a magical glass! What- how does it work? What does it do?" She tentatively reached out a finger to touch it, feeling the cool, smooth glass. The screen wobbled a bit under her touch, the icons shifting around.
"In the world I was in, this was how people communicated with each other, shared information, recorded information... it was an amazing sight. Nearly everyone owned one, and all these devices could communicate with each other."
"Like... like carrier pigeons? Or that new telegraph that was invented overseas?"
Elsa giggled. "Yes, I suppose so. Like insanely fast, invisible carrier pigeons. This is why this device is so dangerous, though." She tapped the Kiwix app on the phone, which loaded the offline Wikipedia the other Elsa had kept for quick reference on all her law cases, then typed 'telephone' into it.
Anna looked over her shoulder at the glowing screen, watching it build words like a book in the blink of an eye. She started to read. "In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell was the first to be granted a United States patent for a device that produced clearly intelligible replication of the human voice at a second device. Elsa... is this... this is... what is this?"
"You know of England's Encyclopedia Britannica?"
"Of course. I read our copy in the Royal Library a few years ago when... you know."
Elsa snorted. "Of course you did. This is the same thing. An encyclopedia, but... from the future, Anna. This article you're reading is about something that hasn't happened yet. It won't happen for another 34 years."
Anna sat down hard on the wooden floor. "That... wow. I... I can see why you'd say this is so dangerous, Elsa. Literally everyone in the entire world would want this, to be able to predict the future, to know what's going to happen."
"Yes. You and I both know people would kill for this. Destroy entire nations for this. They wouldn't think twice about wiping out all of Arendelle and killing every one of us to get their hands on this, which is why it's so important that it remain secret." She turned off the device, resting atop its solar charger, and replenished the glowing snowflake that kept its battery charged.
"So... what are you going to do with it? Just... keep it there?" Anna pulled herself off the floor and made her way back to the corner of Elsa's bed, patting the space next to her.
Elsa sat down, letting out a heavy sigh, her shoulders slumping. "I- I don't know yet. On the one hand I almost think it'd be better to destroy it, to wipe it out of existence. But on the other hand... I have to think about our kingdom, our people." Her voice cracked and her body trembled as she remembered one of the evening walks with the other Anna. "Anna... in the future I saw, there was no Arendelle. No record of our kingdom, no record that we ever existed. That terrified me. What happened in that world, in that Arendelle, that it ceased to exist, that there was no record of it at all?"
Anna watched the anguish contort her sister's face and pulled out her mother's scarf from under one of the pillows, draping it over Elsa's shoulders. "So you're worried that somehow, having this magical machine could lead to that?"
"No, quite the opposite. What... what obligation do I have to use the information on it for good, to advance our kingdom? On that device is centuries of knowledge about things like science, medicine, mathematics... do I have an obligation to use that knowledge to help our people? What if... whatever happened to that other Arendelle, what if I can prevent that?" She looked into her sister's eyes, seeing only kindness and love reflected.
"I don't know, Elsa. That's... that's a really big question. But I guess... Mama and Papa raised us to always do the next right thing, and so... yeah, I guess we would use whatever knowledge you had to keep our kingdom safe." She flopped backwards on the bed again. "It's so mind-boggling, sis. To think that you saw the future, you lived in the future, and you brought some of it back. I thought you were magical before, but now... wow. It's like you're a goddess or something. You literally have the power of prophecy now!"
Her sister rolled her eyes before laying down on the bed beside her. "As if I needed more magic to make people even more afraid of me. No, we have to keep this a secret. Our secret, THE secret, the one we can never share." She watched Anna's face carefully for agreement and relaxed as Anna nodded along with her.
"Elsa... thank you."
"For what?"
"For... for trusting me with the biggest secret we've ever had. I- I know that you trust me and love me and all that but... thank you. It means so much to me," Anna breathed, rolling over to prop her head up on one arm, tossing the other arm around her sister's stomach, "that you felt safe enough to entrust me with something this... important. Literally world-changing. I promise, I won't let you down."
Elsa turned her head and cupped Anna's cheek. "I know you won't." Memories resurged in her mind's eye of laying in bed with the other Anna, and she coughed briefly, trying to clear them from her thoughts. "We... um, we should probably get some rest. It was a long day, getting used to things again." She stood up, assuming Anna would head for her bedroom.
"It was. Hey, can we have a sleepover? You know, like when we were kids? Would that be okay? I really missed you!"
Elsa felt her throat tighten as though someone clenched a fist around her entire neck. Her stomach trembled. Could she safely share a bed with her sister, remembering what she'd done with the other Anna? Would it be awkward? Would it be like it was before her adventure, when they were just sisters? She wrestled with her thoughts before Anna's voice interrupted her reverie.
"Please?" Anna knew her sister could never resist her puppy dog look, no matter how blatantly obvious it was.
Elsa nodded, unable to speak, then sighed with relief as Anna raced out of the room to get her green nightgown. She opened her wardrobe to look for a new nightgown of her own, her favorite still left in the future, as she worried her lower lip at the thought of Anna spending the night.
Moments later, Anna burst in, her long green nightgown flowing around her body as she ran into the room. Elsa sighed with relief, a smile growing on her face. This wasn't the Anna of the future who slept stark naked in bed, just her sister. She pulled down the blue and white embroidered linen sheets and climbed in, Anna doing the same.
"Ready to sleep already, sis?" Elsa asked, pulling up the blankets. Anna gave a nod, and Elsa flicked her wrist, small bursts of snow extinguishing the oil lamps on the nightstands.
"I missed you so much, Elsa," Anna said quietly, laying on her back and staring at the canopy over the bed, her hands behind her head. "I... I was so afraid I'd never see you again, that I'd have to... somehow find a way to get along with your double, find some way to... accept her despite how angry and scared I was. Knowing she wasn't you, and never could be."
Elsa turned on her left side, propping her head up as she regarded the silhouette of her sister, the dark room obscuring most of her features. "I suppose I had it easier than you did in this crazy adventure," she murmured.
Anna turned to face her sister, her breath soft and quiet. "You didn't really tell me much about her. About the other me. What was she like?"
"She was... a lot like you. Brash. Honest. Bold. Incredibly brave. She knew what she wanted in life, and she wasn't afraid to go get it. She was... sad, too. Some of her dreams got deferred because of the other me," Elsa mused. "Anna?"
"Hmm?"
She hesitantly reached out and touched under Anna's chin with two fingers. "Promise me you'll go after your dreams, you'll chase whatever your heart desires, and you won't let anyone - even me - stop you from doing that?"
Anna giggled and took Elsa's hand. "Silly, why would you stop me?"
"She did. The other Elsa. She... made poor choices, choices that hurt her Anna. They... fell out of love. I never want to do that to you, so... please promise me?"
Anna extended her hand, touching Elsa's hip. "All right. I promise I will chase after my dreams, Elsa. Just remember that it'll almost always include you. We were separated for so long, I never want us to be separated again."
"Thank you, Anna. What would I do without you?"
Anna leaned over and kissed Elsa on the forehead. "You'll always have me, Elsa."
Author's Notes
Thanks to everyone who commented on the previous chapters. After reading this one, how do you feel about Anna's reactions, knowing what was in the back of her head the whole time?
There's an intentional anachronism in here - the pinky swear wasn't coined until 1860.
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Chapter 16: Kingdom of Isolation
Summary:
She sat down at the very top of the cold steps, her head bowed against her folded arms. *How could I have been so stupid? How could I have lost control like that? What must she think of me?*
Chapter Text
Chapter 16: Kingdom of Isolation
Elsa paced the floor of her ice palace, her footfalls echoing through the cavernous crystalline halls, the emptiness pressing down on her like an avalanche. Dried tears marked her cheeks as she gazed up the azure staircase, remembering how her sister had pursued her up those stairs just a couple of years ago.
She sat down at the very top of the cold steps, her head bowed against her folded arms. How could I have been so stupid? How could I have lost control like that? What must she think of me?
Outside, the chill wind howled against the walls, whistling across the bridge that connected the mountain to the rest of the land. The sun was already high in the sky, the day half over. She wondered where Marshmallow and Olaf were, then realized she was only listening for one person.
She had no idea how long she sat there, unmoving, just waiting, until the heavy ice doors creaked open.
Soft footsteps echoed on the icy floor, walking towards her. Elsa kept her head down, unable to lift it, trying to hide the tears pooling in her eyes once again.
Then the voice she was simultaneously aching and dreading to hear cut through the silence of the icy chamber.
âElsa? We need to talk.â
Earlier that day
Anna tied ribbons in her twin plaits as she finished getting ready for the day. Elsa had been back for just over a day and a half, and it was time for the Queen to resume her normal duties, open court being the most pressing. Anna had absolutely no desire to keep the mantle of the Crown, a fact she happily reminded Elsa of that morning as they woke up together.
The day had already started oddly; she woke that morning to find Elsa gently cupping her cheek and whispering her name, but she was still asleep. I guess she really missed me if she was dreaming about me, the redhead thought. Once sheâd woken, Elsa pulled her hand back as though sheâd touched a hot coal, then practically fell out of bed. When Anna pressed her for what was wrong, Elsa had turned beet red before making some unintelligible excuse.
Maybe Elsa will feel better after some breakfast, she thought. Finishing up her outfit for the day, she left her chambers, skipping down the hall to the royal dining room, her heart light. Even with Elsaâs odd behavior, Anna had slept the best sheâd slept in days. Having Elsa next to her made everything all right.
Elsaâs cheeks pinked again as Anna waltzed into the dining room, her nose high in the air as she followed the scents of bacon and eggs. For her part, Elsa was just glad to be eating her normal food again; much as she loved 2022, there were still some comforts that only home could provide.
Unbidden, her traitorous heart reminded her that the Anna she could romantically love was not one of those comforts. As though to twist the knife further, her mind echoed an even more perverse whisper: not yet, anyway.
âHey sis,â Anna chirped brightly. âHow did you sleep last night?â
âW-well, thank you,â Elsa demurred.
âMe too! It was so nice waking up next to you.â She missed seeing Elsa practically choke on her cup of coffee, but saw the coughing fit afterwards. âAre you okay?â
âF-fine, thank you, drank just a bit⊠of coffee the, um, the wrong way.â
At that moment, Gerda came out carrying a covered serving dish, placing it in front of Anna. She looked up, arching an eyebrow and catching Gerdaâs small smile and eyes directed at Elsa. âWhat⊠whatâs this?â
Elsa grinned. âTake a look. Something I⊠Thank you Gerda, you may go,â she said softly, watching the servant depart the room before continuing. âSomething I brought back from my travels, you know?â she leaned over the table, voice barely above a whisper.
Anna lifted the cover to find what looked like a sandwich, but instead of the traditional meats or fish, she saw it contained scrambled eggs, bacon, and cheese. âElsa, what⊠what is this magic?â
âItâs something called a breakfast sandwich! Itâs breakfast food⊠but in the form of a sandwich.â She clapped her hands together in anticipation of Annaâs reactionâŠ
⊠and the sound Anna made as she bit into the crisp, buttery toast made Elsa choke.
Sheâd heard that moan before.
She knew that moan, intimately.
Sheâd caused that moan in the other Anna.
Elsa squirmed in her chair as her body reacted even faster to Annaâs gustatory delight. She could feel her arousal growing as she fidgeted, her ears and cheeks burning, as she tried to hide her reaction.
âElsa! This is amaaaaaaazing!â Anna crowed, taking another gigantic bite and rewarding her with the same intense reaction.
âI⊠Iâm glad you like it, Anna,â Elsa blushed. She turned her head and folded her arms around herself, unable to watch Anna more at the moment, lest her recently awakened libido get the best of her.
âSure you donât want any?â Anna asked, offering the last few morsels of the sandwich. Elsa shook her head, making the mistake of looking at her sister as Anna finished the last bite, then licked her fingers.
Something broke free inside Elsa. Watching her sister lick her fingers brought back memories of the other Anna making love to her, and desire surged in Elsa like a volcanic eruption. She subconsciously began salivating, her hands clammy, her whole body shaking. She stood from her chair and surged forward, capturing Annaâs jaw in her hand, then leaned down and kissed her full on the lips, swiping her tongue across Annaâs lower lip.
Anna was dumbstruck. What was happening? One moment her sister had the most amazing sandwich sheâd ever tasted in her life prepared for her, and the next moment her sister was kissing her as though they were lovers. Even Kristoff had never been so forward with her. Confused and unnerved, she stood from her own chair and shoved Elsa by the shoulders away from her, sending the woman flying across the room and skidding into the wall.
Elsa sat up against the dining room wall. Her eyes were wide as she shook uncontrollably, frost beginning to appear on the floor around her body. âAnna, I-â she gasped, struggling to breathe. The impact had knocked the wind out of her. She clawed for purchase against the wall, slowly pulling herself to her feet as she felt like an avalanche had fallen on her.
Anna had rejected her. Not only rejected her, but rejected her violently. She felt as though someone had reached into her chest and squeezed her heart until it crumbled into shards of broken glass. Tears pooled in her eyes as time slowly restarted; she could see Anna slowly approaching her.
Before she could subject herself to further rejection, further hurt, she turned and fled the dining room, the guards surprised to see the Queen running at full tilt down the hallway.
âElsa! Oh my god, Iâm so sorry! I didnât mean to push you that hard!â Anna shouted from behind her, running as fast as she could but losing ground. They both cleared the great doors at the front of the palace, but Elsa was faster and was already running across the fjord, ice forming beneath her feet.
Anna stood at the shoreline, watching her sister run as she cursed herself. Stupid. That was so stupid, I should have just asked her to stop. She noted the direction her sister was running and a wan smile crossed her face. At least I know where sheâs going this time, she thought.
âElsa? We need to talk,â Annaâs voice echoed in the cavernous main hall of the ice palace as she closed the massive doors behind her. She looked around tentatively; the last time sheâd tried to visit here unannounced, the giant snow golem that they now called Marshmallow was patrolling.
Marshmallow didnât seem to be around, so Anna took a few steps inside, looking around. Elsa had repaired the place after the incident with Weseltonâs thugs and Hans, and it once again looked brand new. Her eyes traced the dual sets of circular stairs, following them up the hallway, and at the very top she could barely make out the silhouette of her sister.
Anna began to climb the stairs slowly, each step echoing like a hammer striking an anvil. As she ascended, soft snuffling sounds reached her ears; Elsa must be crying, she thought. When she reached the last flight of stairs, she made out Elsaâs form, her face still buried in her arms, resting on her knees as she sat on the top stair.
âElsa⊠Iâm sorry. I really am. I didnât mean to shove you that hard. I donât know what came over me,â she tendered, receiving no response in return. She reached out a hand as if to comfort her sister, but hesitated.
âItâs⊠my fault, Anna,â Elsaâs muffled voice replied before she lifted her head. âI shouldnât have done that. Itâs not⊠itâs⊠I shouldnât have kissed you like that.â Her sorrow was palpable, her voice raspy and thick.
Anna sat down next to her on the landing. âI⊠Iâm not mad at you, Elsa. I was surprised. Shocked.â She finished reaching out and gently laid her hand on her sisterâs shoulder, receiving a hitched breath in return. âI mean⊠no one has ever kissed me like that. Not even Kristoff, and certainly not Hans, and I was just, I mean, it was so exciting but scary and confusing, andâŠâ
âI scared you?â Elsa mumbled.
âA⊠a little, yes. I wasnât sure what was happening, why you did that. Thatâs why I reacted like I did. But Iâm sorry, I overreacted a lot. Did⊠did I hurt you?â
Elsa shook her head. âJust⊠my pride, I suppose.â
Long, heavy silence filled the air for some time before Anna swallowed loudly, wrung her hands together, and worked up the courage to ask the question that was on her mind the whole time, the question she asked herself, the wind, and the sky on the long walk up the North Mountain.
âElsa⊠why DID you kiss me like that?â
âI⊠Anna, Iâm so sorry. It will never happen again, I promise,â she rushed to answer, her eyes glancing back and forth between Annaâs to discern her reactions.
âItâs not⊠Iâm not upset at you, Elsa. I just want to know why⊠why that happened. Weâve never⊠never done anything like that. I mean, maybe we did as little kids before we knew differently, but⊠I didnât think you felt that way about anyone, orâŠâ she began to mumble.
Elsa nudged her shoulder. âOr what, Anna?â
Annaâs cheeks turned red as her voice dropped low. âOr even knew how to do that. I mean, Iâm not trying to be insulting or anything. Iâve just⊠never seen you be intimate in any fashion with anyone. You wonât even let Sven lick you.â
âI donât know why you DO let Sven lick you,â her sister snarked before looking down at her hands, clasping and unclasping them. âI⊠I havenât been as fully forthcoming as I should have been, Anna, and Iâm sorry.â
âWhat do you mean?â
Elsa swallowed, summoning her courage as she took a deep breath. âIn the future. I told you about the other you, the future you, but I⊠I omitted some important things because I wasnât ready to share them. Obviously⊠I need to tell you what happened, I need to explain myself so that you understand why⊠why I did that.â
Anna took her sisterâs hands in her own, stilling them. âItâs okay, Elsa. Whatever it is, you can tell me. I promise it wonât change anything. Youâre⊠youâre not going to lose me.â
âYou canât promise that,â she replied sharply, losing herself into Annaâs eyes.
âI can, Elsa. I can, and I will.â She rubbed her palms over Elsaâs knuckles, warming the cool alabaster skin.
Elsa stood up, offering her hand to Anna, as she guided them both into the upper room off the top of the stairs. With a wave of her hand, she conjured a couch and sat down on it, the icy fabric and snow stuffing making for a comfortable seat.
âAll right. The⊠the Anna of the future, I told you she was married to the me of the future.â Watching her sister nodding, she continued. âWhat I didnât tell you was⊠how do I say this⊠I might have developed some feelings for her too.â
Anna tilted her head. âDeveloped some⊠you mean, like romantically?â
âRomantically and⊠other feelings,â Elsa muttered, her cheeks ablaze.
âOtherâŠ?â Anna whispered.
âYes⊠yes, other. Anna, Iâm so sorry, I never meant for any of this to happen, but⊠it was all just so sudden. When I arrived there, on the very next day, you - the other Anna - kissed me. And I mean kissed me romantically and⊠and sexually, almost.â
âOh my goodness, really? What- why- how did you react?â
Elsa hung her head. âI⊠I really liked it. But Anna, thatâsâŠâ Her words lodged in her throat as surely as if theyâd been a stampede of people fleeing for the only exit. She coughed. âThatâs not all of it. I⊠weâŠâ
Anna waited patiently, watching her sister struggle to get the words out. Whatever had happened in the future must have profoundly affected her. Perhaps Elsa had the same shocked reaction to the future Anna that she had when Elsa kissed her. A memory tickled at her mind, and she recalled that the future Elsa had kissed her in the dungeon - and sheâd reacted exactly the same way. Before she could say anything, Elsa continued, voice barely above a whisper.
âWe were⊠intimate.â
âI⊠um, I think I misheard, Elsa. Did you say⊠you and⊠the future me, did you say you were intimate?â
Elsa nodded, her shoulders hunched over, anticipating Annaâs reaction.
âLike⊠how intimate? What do you mean by intimate? Like sleepover intimate? Sharing a toothbrush intimate?â
âIntimate, Anna. E-everything. We were intimate in all the ways that two women could be,â she murmured, wishing she could curl up in a ball and never have this conversation with her own sister. At seeing the confused expression on her sisterâs face, Elsa rolled her eyes in frustration. âSexually intimate, Anna. We were⊠we were sexually intimate.â
Annaâs jaw dropped, and for a few long moments, she resembled a goldfish. Her mouth opened and closed soundlessly.
âAnna⊠Anna. Please, say something.â
âYou⊠were intimate with future me? Like⊠I donât even understand how that would work, Elsa. You donât have⊠you know, boy parts,â she said with flailing hand gestures, a confusing melange of mental images running through her mind. Physical intimacy in general was something of a mystery to her, the Royal tutors covering the dry, clinical basics, and her experiences with Hans and Kristoff were limited to some hand holding and kissing, but not much else.
âDo you really want to know, Anna?â
Anna struggled with her response. On the one hand, she and Elsa shared everything. Years of being separated made her desperate to include Elsa in every part of her life and vice versa.
On the other hand⊠the idea of being romantically or sexually involved with another woman was a brand new idea to her. All of Scandinavia was fairly religious; even though Arendelle was more progressive than its neighbors, one woman loving another intimately was rare. A few couples existed like that; theyâd petitioned the Crown for marriage, and Elsa had agreed, despite the reservations of some of the bishops. Elsa was the head of the Church of Arendelle among her many other titles, so what she said was irrefutable law - but there was still substantial social stigma to anything except traditional marriage and relations.
Finally, she mutely nodded.
Elsa reached out her hands and began to cast memory after memory in snow, shapes taking form and illustrating in startling precision what Elsa and the future Anna had shared together, as her sisterâs eyes grew wider and wider.
âI⊠had no idea,â Anna swallowed loudly, her mind blown by the different ways two people could be intimate with each other. âThereâs, uh, nothing in the Royal Library that explains things so⊠clearly.â
âDo you see now why I found myself developing feelings for her? The things I shared with her⊠I always thought that⊠well, you know this. Because of my powers, I thought Iâd never be⊠intimate⊠like that with anyone. ButâŠâ Elsa sighed, her eyes gazing far off in the distance as she recalled her week in the future: waking up in Annaâs arms, sharing meals, fighting the bad guys together.
âBut you did⊠with her. And you⊠you kissed me becauseâŠ?â
âBecause I loved her and you remind me of her so much. And like I said, Iâm so sorry, Anna. It wonât happen again, I promise.â
Elsa relaxed her shoulders and leaned back against the couch, propping her legs up. It was a profound relief for her to finally get all the secrets out in the open, to confess to her sister all that had happened while she was hopping between worlds. Best of all, her sister hadnât yet run away screaming or been outraged or disgusted by her. She felt as though she could fully breathe again.
Anna gently patted Elsaâs ankle with her hand. âHey, I understand falling hard and fast. I was going to marry Hans after literally just minutes.â
Elsa swatted Anna playfully on the arm. âDonât remind me. I still canât believe that.â
âBut yeah, I can understand that.â She paused for a moment, a frown crossing her face. âI⊠I suppose if I had given that other Elsa a chance, maybe we could have gotten to know each other, too. Or at least, I could have understood from her perspective what she thought of the other me,â she murmured, her face falling.
âIâm honestly not sure, Anna. She and the other Anna⊠they have some work to do on their relationship. Quite a lot of it, actually. Theyâre not like we are, not as close as we are.â
âAre you saying⊠what are you saying, Elsa?â
âWeâve had each other all our lives, even when⊠you know, I was locked away. We still talked every day, passed notes under the door, made gifts for each other. They didnât have that because they didnât grow up together. Weâve been through the worst of times together in one way or another, and they havenât.â
Elsa looked out the window of the Ice Palace, her thoughts momentarily drifting to the past, two years prior when sheâd created the place in the belief she could hide from her troubles her magic begot. Instead, Anna had been the one to save her in so many ways, from coming to see her to literally giving her life by stopping Hans. The Anna of the future sheâd fallen for had certainly put her life on the line many times, but it was only when Elsa had revealed her powers that the future Anna had included her in their life or death situations. The future Elsa was still in the dark about what that Anna even did for work, and those secrets were slowly withering their relationship instead of strengthening it.
Anna cleared her throat. âSo, um⊠I guess weâre good? I mean, Iâm good if youâre good. Are you good? And I mean, you donât have to be good, Elsa. Just because Iâm good, I donât want you to have to feel like you have to pretend to be-â
Elsa put a finger against Annaâs lips, suppressing the rush of adrenaline and flicker of heat the gesture triggered in her own body. âIâll be fine, Anna. Are you?â
âI⊠I still feel guilty for what I did to that Elsa. Especially sinceâŠâ Anna took a deep breath, rubbing her palms on her knees, âYour first instinct with another version of me was to fall in love with her, to be kind to her. What does that say about me that I locked another version of you up and rejected her in every way? What kind of sister am I if I couldnât see you in her?â
âYouâre too hard on yourself, Anna. You were frightened and in pain. I donât fault you at all for how you reacted. If our roles had been reversed, Iâm not sure I would have done any better than you. For all we know, I might have frozen an imposter Anna solid on the spot.â
Anna swallowed hard and nodded. âDo⊠do you love me like⊠like that, Elsa? Like the other Anna?â
It was Elsaâs turn to be uncomfortable answering, and she honestly didnât know how she felt just yet. Did she love Anna because she was Anna, or did she love each one differently? âI honestly donât know, Anna. Itâs all still a jumble in my head. I do know I love you and Iâm happy to be back here, with you. Thatâs the one thing Iâm sure of.â
âAnd I love you too, Elsa. I missed you so much when you were gone.â She took a deep breath and stood up. âNow come on, letâs get out of here and head back to the palace.â
âYouâre too good to me, Anna.â Elsa took Annaâs hand, pulling her to her feet and to the icy balcony doors, which she slammed open with a wave of her hand. âWant to see something else I learned in the future?â
Anna nodded gleefully, glad the tension of the conversation had melted away. She had a lot of thinking to do, but she knew this wasnât the time or place to do it. âI hope itâs another sandwich!â
âItâs not quite a sandwich, but I saw⊠some imaginative uses of frost and ice powers in their literature and media. Letâs see if this works. Hold on tight to me, okay?â She lifted her hands up, weaving them in a circular fashion, and formed giant wings of ice on her back as though she were an angel. With another hand motion, a jet of wind and ice propelled the two into the sky like a great eagle, soaring from the North Mountain back to the palace. Despite the wind rushing past her ears, Elsa could hear and feel Annaâs delighted laughter, and decided that of all the things she loved about being home, that was one of the best.
Authorâs Notes
Though it would seem like a logical thing, breakfast sandwiches werenât invented (or at least commercialized) until the 1970s.
The other thing that occurred to me as I was writing Storm of Spirits was that while Elsa and Anna were physically separated for 13 years, there was no way they didnât communicate with each other frequently. Olafâs Frozen Adventure showed that they certainly had no trouble passing gifts to each other so in my headcanon, they may have been physically apart but emotionally together. The same would hold true for Elsaâs ability to be Queen - royal tutors would likely have communicated through the door, sending in schoolwork, etc. when things like meals were delivered. Otherwise she would never have gotten the education needed to be an effective monarch, and it was obviously intended for her to succeed Agnarr.
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Chapter 17: I Wonder As I Wander
Summary:
âOlaf! You canât say things like that! Sheâs my sister! Sheâs my sister AND sheâs the Queen!â She looked around furtively, making sure no one was obviously listening in. âBesides, sisters do not kiss each other⊠that way,â she stage whispered, as she carefully reset the fence pieces.
Chapter Text
Chapter 17: I Wonder as I Wander
Anna walked down the dusty lane, passing by houses with neat slate roofs and diagonal wooden fences. The trees wavered in the stiff springtime breeze, the scent of the ocean always present. Overgrown thatch and large grey boulders dotted the side of the road as she walked up the hills of Arendelleâs outer limits, hundreds of meters above the palace in the distance. She rested against one of the larger fence posts, admiring the view, as her thoughts wandered.
I wonder what it would be like to live up here, someplace quiet, someplace without all the hustle and bustle of the palace, she mused, watching a few children playing in one of the yards. I wonder what it would be like if it were just Elsa and me.
She started at that thought, wondering where it had come from. Was it from that passionate kiss Elsa had given her yesterday? Or the tales of Elsa being with the other Anna, married to her and fulfilling her.
Theyâd woken up together again in the morning, but Elsa had crowded herself on the very edge of the bed, as far away from Anna as possible while still being on the bed. As soon as sheâd woken, Elsa made sure to keep a cautious, generous distance - not far enough that it would be apparent to someone that something was wrong, but far enough that Anna noticed the difference.
Without thinking, her hand lifted itself to her lips, and she lightly brushed her index and middle fingers over her lower lip where Elsa had run her tongue during her passionate kiss.
Should I be disgusted? Itâs not like we havenât kissed each other hundreds of times when we were little kids, and even after the Great Thaw, she thought.
âKissed who?â a voice broke through her thoughts, and she shrieked before looking down to find Olaf.
âOlaf! What are you doing here?â
âOh, you know, just wandering around pondering the great mysteries of life, listening to people have conversations with each other and with themselves standing on a hill overlooking the city,â he blurted, winding up for a good ramble.
Anna sighed. âNow is not the time, Olaf. I was⊠I was just thinking⊠out loud, I guess.â She looked back out at the fjord, her eyes unfocusing.
Olaf looked out for a moment, his brow scrunched as he tried to figure out what Anna was staring at, and scratched his head. âWhat were you thinking about?â
âItâs nothing, itâs just⊠well⊠Can you keep a secret?â
âYes! I mean maybe. It depends on the secret. And whoâs asking me about the secret. Actually, no. I canât keep a secret at all. But you can tell me anyway,â he offered with a guileless smile.
Anna gave a soft laugh as she hugged herself. âI⊠well, I can never fault you for your honesty, Olaf. Letâs just say something happened recently and Iâm not sure what to think about it.â
âYou kissed someone?â
âThe opposite, actually. Someone kissed me and I⊠I donât know how I feel about it,â she sighed, remembering how awkward and uncomfortable she felt in the dining room. Else had apologized profusely in her Ice Palace, and Anna had forgiven her, but she still couldnât erase the sensation from her mind. Was it a good sensation? It was shocking, but was it unpleasant? She couldnât decide.
âWas it Kristoff? He talks about kissing you a lot, and he always tells me to keep that secret, so maybe itâs the same thing, right?â
Anna pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaled, mentally counting to five. Kristoff was the last person she wanted to think about right at that moment. But as Olafâs words sunk in, she considered his mention of Kristoff and realized while her Elsa had vanished in the future, she hadnât thought about or even talked to Kristoff once during the entire incident.
She didnât need him, not in the same way that he seemed to need her.
She did need her sister. As her sister, her best friend, her confidante, as Queen of the nation. But as a romantic interest? She wasnât sure what to make of the idea, and started to walk down the road, idly tracing her finger along the fence as Olaf followed, confused at her lack of response.
âWait, is kissing something you only do if you love the person?â Olaf asked as he waddled behind Anna.
âWell⊠yes. You know that, Olaf. Weâve talked⊠at length, I might add⊠about what is appropriate behavior around other people. Remember what we said about warm hugs?â she snickered, recalling many long talks by Elsa about how warm hugs were something most people werenât comfortable with, despite Olafâs genial nature. Those same talks also extended to telling him not to kiss other people who didnât ask to be kissed, and keeping his hands out of other peopleâs mouths, except for Sven. He didnât understand why someone wouldnât want a warm hug or a kiss, and the discussion went in circles for over an hour.
âWarm hugs are best with warm friends,â he muttered sullenly, before one of his mercurial mood shifts. âWait, so that means the person who kissed you must love you a lot! Are you going to marry them? Will you have babies with them? Why are you blushing so much? Are you overheating?â
Anna covered her ears with her hands as her breathing sped up. âOlaf. Olaf! Not⊠not now, okay. Just⊠relax. Iâm trying to figure out what the person meant by kissing me like⊠like they did. Whether it means anything or not, okay? Iâm certainly not going to do⊠those other things you mentioned.â She tamed her breathing as her heart slowed back down to normal.
âI bet it was Elsa,â he blurted out.
Anna stumbled and pinwheeled against the rail fence, knocking a few slats loose before falling backwards into someoneâs garden. âOlaf! You canât say things like that! Sheâs my sister! Sheâs my sister AND sheâs the Queen!â She looked around furtively, making sure no one was obviously listening in. âBesides, sisters do not kiss each other⊠that way,â she stage whispered, as she carefully reset the fence pieces.
Olaf scratched his head with one of his twig arms. âWhy not? You love each other. You just said people only kiss when they love each other like that. And you do plenty of other things together like sleep in the same bed all the time or hug each other whenever youâve been apart for more than three minu-â
âOlafâŠâ she shook her head, a headache beginning to press against her temples, âthatâs a different kind of love than what weâre talking about. Itâs not the same-â Anna looked at the curve in the road ahead, spotting one of the local families, the Larsens, out in their yard. The Larsens were one of the many families with children who knew and loved Olaf, and Anna immediately let out a sigh of relief. âWe can talk about this another time, Olaf. Right now, it looks like Harald and Anders would like to see you instead,â she indicated, waving at the young boys calling Olafâs name.
The little snowman toddled off to go play with friends as Anna scurried quickly past the house before he could change his mind. She walked further up the road, climbing the steep hill that led almost to the outer stone walls of the city. She reached the uppermost tower, looking down at the entirety of the fjord as it sparkled in the sunlight.
Anna sat in the grass, mulling over Olafâs clumsy but truthful words. How did her sister love her, that she felt comfortable enough to kiss her like a lover? Was her trip to the future, to that other reality, so dramatic and changing that she became a different person in just a week, or did Elsa harbor these kinds of feelings before she ever left, and simply didnât tell Anna?
She picked a nearby daisy, staring at it idly as a cool wind from the mountains gently swept over the hills, ruffling her bangs. Her French tutor had taught her effeuiller la marguerite, plucking the daisy. Anna began to pluck the petals off the daisy as she mulled over Elsaâs actions, mindlessly reciting the traditional French. Elle mâaime un peu - beaucoup - passionĂ©ment - Ă la folie - pas du tout. She loves me a little, a lot, passionately, to madness, not at all.
She gave a bitter laugh as the last petal settled on passionĂ©ment, she loves me passionately. Olafâs words came back to haunt her once more. âYou do plenty of other things togetherâ, heâd said. And it was true. She and Elsa hugged each other as though they hadnât seen each other for years, even if theyâd only been apart a half hour. They held hands all the time. They walked through the city square, arm in arm like a couple at every festival and holiday. They slept in the same bed more often than not, curled up against each other like cats. Was that the behavior of siblings or someone else? She had no basis for judgement, and it wasnât like she could go knocking on doors around town to ask people.
Did Elsa love her romantically?
She swallowed, her throat dry at the implications. Did Elsa love her romantically enough to want to⊠be intimate? With her own sister? Why was Elsa behaving like this toward her?
Anna watched Harald and Anders running in circles around Olaf far below her vantage point. Siblings, out playing and having fun together.
Siblings. Annaâs thoughts turned to their relationship. Why did they behave the way they did in general, so much more close than others? Some of it was unquestionably the thirteen long years theyâd been separated by their parents, to protect her from Elsaâs magic. That separation left deep scars in both of them, wounds that only each otherâs presence soothed. They needed each other to remind the other that neither was alone.
Anna had occasionally wondered whether they were even properly sisters, having spent more time apart than together. Yet they werenât truly apart, not in their hearts. Elsa never saw her in person all those years, but they talked daily, backs against Elsaâs door, complaining quietly about their studies, laughing together, making gifts for each other. Sheâd made a bakerâs dozen of Olaf-shaped gifts for her older sister, one each Christmas. More than a few times, her father had scooped up her sleeping body from Elsaâs door, carrying her back to her room.
She contemplated the romantic relationships sheâd had. Hans, for as little as that had lasted, was a whirlwind. Looking back, she never loved him, but she absolutely loved the idea of being in love, and he was the first person that had ever shown interest - that had the opportunity to show interest - in her.
And then there was Kristoff. Anna let out a heavy sigh, her shoulders slumping. He was a wonderful person. Strong, loving, caring, selfless, dedicated, loyal⊠virtually everything she could ever want in a best friend. Yet she could see how he felt about her, how every glance was filled with pregnant pauses and longing so dire, it was like watching a thirsty man in a desert crawling towards an oasis. And despite it all, she felt⊠nothing. None of what sheâd dreamed of, none of what she imagined being swept off her feet by a handsome prince would feel like.
To her heart, Kristoff was lumped in the same category as Olaf and Sven. Lovable, people she could and did love, but not someone she could be in love with. And therein was the problem. She wanted to be the closest of friends. He wanted something different. Am I afraid to feel that way towards someone? she questioned, tossing the plucked daisy petals into the wind.
It wasnât the same with Elsa, she thought. When sheâd kissed Hans, it was almost like licking a perfumed soap dish. He was so polished, so elite, with the perfect cologne and flawless looks hiding his monstrous nature. When sheâd kissed Kristoff, it felt like licking reindeer-scented sandpaper. Both experiences had ended up being stomach churning, though for different reasons.
When sheâd been kissed by Elsa, it felt like a cool breeze, the scent of winterâs fresh air mixed with a bit of mint, warm and cool at the same time. Soft. Pleasant. She decided that yes, it was pleasant. And part of her wanted to experience it again.
Anna brushed the grass and dirt off her green dress as she stood, starting the long walk back towards the palace. Going for a walk had been meant to clear her head, not clutter it more, she lamented with a rueful chuckle to herself.
Sheâd been so intent on discerning how Elsa felt about her that she forgot one key aspect to consider: how she felt about her sister. As she walked by the row houses and the stone palisades of Arendelleâs outer walls, memories of the previous week washed over her.
Anna was all but certain after her impromptu coronation that sheâd lost Elsa again, but this time, there was no door between them. Instead, she had Elsaâs twin, a poor substitute for the real thing. The night of her coronation, sheâd cried herself to sleep, hugging Elsaâs pillows and trying to hold onto her scent as long as possible. And the night after. And the night after that.
The Royal Astronomer and all of her scientific advisors had been thoroughly flummoxed by the situation; besides Pabbie ascertaining that the Elsa in their dungeons was not her sister, even the elder troll was at a loss for what had happened. The straw that had broken the camelâs back was a quiet question from Kai a few days after her coronation, in private.
âYour Majesty,â heâd intoned, holding the door open to the library. âA word, if I may?â
Once theyâd been seated in the library, he brought out a lengthy scroll. âArchbishop Hauge asked me to suggest that perhaps a memorial service would be in order for your sister, to ease the transition for you and provide you some closure. I know it canât be easy for you, with your parents having vanished as well-â
âNo.â
âYour Majesty, I underst-â
âNo, Kai. I wonât do that again. I had to bury my parents alone. I wonât bury my sister alone as well.â
âPrinces- I mean, Queen Anna, I have already found the stonecarver-â
Anna stood up from the chair she was in and glared daggers at the portly chamberlain. âListen to me carefully, Kai,â she hissed. âI do not wish to hear another word about this matter, not from the Archbishop, not from you, not from a stonecarver. The next person who speaks to me of burying my sister will be exiled from the kingdom and set adrift in the Dark Sea. Am I making myself perfectly clear?â
Kai nodded mutely before excusing himself from the library, stumbling into the doors in his haste to leave.
As the door closed behind him, Annaâs gaze caught a candlelit portrait of her sister, and she choked back a sob. âI canât believe sheâs gone,â she whispered. âI canât believe she left me again.â
The next day, Anna had taken a small measure of joy in seeing the torn up scroll in the pile of refuse to be tossed out, once Elsa had returned to the castle and everyone had seen her powers, knew that it was really her again. Just the thought of Elsa returning to her brought a smile to Annaâs face even now.
I couldnât do this without her, Anna mused as her attention drew back to the present. None of it. Not being Queen, not being here, nothing. Sheâs the brightest star in my sky. She thought of all the things sheâd missed that week - all the things she was afraid sheâd miss forever. Their hugs. Their kisses. Their sleepovers. Their meals together. Their jokes. The gifts they gave each other. She had resigned herself to living out her days joyless, absent all those little touches that her sister brought into her life.
In her grief, in her fears of what sheâd lost, she recognized that Elsa was the biggest source of joy and comfort in her life. Elsa was everything to her, just as sheâd sung on her birthday: her sun, moon, and sky. She was the shoulder she leaned on, the heart that lived outside her own chest, the constant companion she needed in her life.
Elsa was everything to Anna, and a week of facing her fears, of facing a life without Elsa, cemented in her mind that she couldnât do without her. She watched the neighbors playing a game of knights fighting some mythical dragon and realized she wanted the fairy tale happily ever after, too. But instead of a fictional prince sweeping her off her feet as sheâd dreamed about growing up, the face - the person - in her daydreams doing that was Elsa.
Like a bolt of lightning arcing across the nighttime sky, Anna realized that she didnât just love her sister. She was very much in love with her sister.
Authorâs Notes
I was going to say the scroll was in the wastebasket, but modern wastebaskets as we know them werenât invented until 1875. The history of sanitation (or the lack thereof) is kind of frightening. Iâm amazed we made it this far as a species.
At this point in the story, I was toying with an Act III arc that involved Kristoff and the nature of the aurora, but I realized it was an unnecessary complication and took the focus away from Elsa and Anna. So we only have another 5 chapters left in this fic. However, the now-alternate storyline is written, mostly - I never finished it, but a substantial part of it does exist. So, question to you, my reader. Would you like to read the alternate, incomplete story, and if so, should it be an epilogue on this one (like a directorâs cut) or something separate, even though I will never finish it?
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Chapter 18: From Now On
Summary:
The priest turned to Anna. âAnna, do you take Elsa to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, in sorrow and in joy, to have and to hold, from this day forward, as long as you both shall live?â
Chapter Text
Chapter 18: From Now On
No more secrets, Elsa whispered to herself. She paced a small circle in her chambers as she thought about the magical device in her lockbox. How would Anna react to seeing videos of their parents - well, sort of their parents, if parents from another world counted.
A quiet knock sounded from her door; Elsa opened it slowly, then smiled at her sister. âGood morning, Princessâ, she murmured.
âHi sis,â Anna offered as she came in and sat on the corner of Elsaâs bed, her hands uncharacteristically still, clasped together in front of her. Her shoulders were higher than usual as well, a clear sign of tension.
âI missed you at breakfast this morning.â
Anna laughed nervously. âOh⊠you know, I just slept in. Overslept. And I didnât hear Kai calling for me to wake up.â In reality, sheâd lain awake, staring at her ceiling for over an hour as she contemplated everything that had occurred to her on her walkabout. Did she really love her sister as more than her sister? What would their parents think? How did she really feel about it?
âYou should have slept with me last night. I would have woken you on time.â
Anna burst out into a coughing fit, her cheeks reddening. The very idea of sleeping with Elsa sent her mind in places she wasnât prepared to go, especially after the very⊠vivid explanations of how women were intimate Elsa had shown her in the ice palace the other day.
âAnna, whatâs going on with you today?â Elsa asked, her hands on her hips.
âNothing! Nothing, not a thing, no thing, absolutely not thinking about things that I shouldnât be thinking about, Elsa. Nope, no maâam,â she rambled, her hands coming alive as they wrung each other and pulled idly at the threads in her dress.
Elsa arched her eyebrow.
âI promise, itâs⊠itâs nothing. Iâm just not feeling myself- I mean, Iâm just not feeling like myself today. Anyway,â she squirmed, âWhat did you want to see me about?â
Elsa sighed and sat down next to her sister. âRemember when we promised there would be no more closed doors, no more secrets?â She received a silent nod in acknowledgement, continuing, âThereâs one last thing from my trip to that other world that I need to show you, that I need to share with you. Something⊠well, itâs something that almost defies explanation.â
She stood up and walked to her door, locking it and then freezing the door handle with a frostbolt, then bending down to open the lockbox in her antechamber.
âElsa, youâre starting to worry me a little,â Anna laughed with a shaky voice. âWh-what is it?â
âItâs nothing bad, but you should definitely remain seated.â She carefully disconnected the solar battery pack from the phone and carried it over to the bed. âWhat Iâm about to show you is real, or at least as real as that other world got.â She took a deep breath, swiped open the phone, and stared for a moment at the home screen.
âElsa?â Anna leaned over to look at the screen and gently touched her hand to Elsaâs thigh before realizing what sheâd unconsciously done. Anna pulled her hand back like sheâd been burned, but Elsaâs attention was on the home screen.
âHere goes.â Elsa tapped the Photos app open and scrolled to the first set of photos of their parents.
Anna gasped and reflexively hugged Elsaâs arm, looking at Agnar and Iduna on the screen, a photo of them taken presumably at their home. They were sitting next to each other at a table, with two colorful beverages in front of them, and a white fluffy dog laying in the background on what looked like cobblestones. âThatâs- Elsa- is that⊠thatâs them?â
Elsa nodded. âIt is. Itâs them from that world.â Her eyes had already begun to mist. âThey were still alive there, still happy and healthy and⊠with that Elsa.â She swiped through photos of the three of them at various national parks, at more restaurants than Elsa could count, at Annaâs graduation.
âDid you meet them?â
âNo, I didnât dare.â Elsaâs stomach dropped at the thought. She questioned and second-guessed herself often since returning to Arendelle; should she have tried to meet them? Should she have accepted that Annaâs suggestion to at least give them a call? She pushed those thoughts away for the moment.
At that admission, Anna released a breath and the envy she knew she would have felt if Elsa had. âIâm not in nearly as many of these, am I?â
âNo. In that world, we werenât sisters, so there are many more of that Elsa and our parents than that Anna. But thereâs still quite a few to look at.â
Anna sighed, a wet sniffle coming from her as she regarded a photo with all four of them in it, that worldâs Anna in her red graduation robes, that worldâs Elsa in a blazer and slacks, and their parentsâ doppelgĂ€ngers in formalwear. âThey look so old, Elsa. They look like⊠like they would right now, donât they? If they were⊠still here.â She stared at the crowâs feet around Idunaâs eyes, Agnarâs receding hairline, his red hair laced with steel grey. Heâd put on some weight, but looked so jovial it didnât matter. She smiled to herself. They looked and sounded like the parents she wished they could have had, had they survived. That counted in her heart.
âThey do. I spent hours one night just looking through all these, just to see what their lives were like. They were happy. Still in love with each other, and they cared very much about us.â
âHow do you know?â
Elsa closed her eyes to steady herself before reaching for the bottom navigation menu. With a heave of breath and a gentle pat of Annaâs thigh, she tapped the videos icon and swiped to Annaâs graduation, then hit play.
The camera moved around until it settled on what looked like a granite pavilion, white, flat rock laid down instead of cobblestones. A statue of a man on a horse and some kind of sculpture was in the background as Anna, dressed in long, vivid red robes and a red cap with a gold tassel, stood in the center of the picture with a broad grin. She held out her diploma proudly to whoever was shooting the video, its equally red leather-bound case and gold letters glinting in the sunlight.
The little speakers roared to life as Agnar walked into view.
âAnna, weâre so proud of you!â Agnar said to the camera as he one-arm hugged the redhead, his bright blue tie fluttering in the breeze. âYouâve been so wonderful to our Elsa, and we couldnât be happier that you two found each other.â Iduna came into view from the side, joining the group hug. âCongratulations, Anna,â Iduna murmured before giving Anna a peck on the cheek.
Anna lost her composure as the video came to an end, a sob breaking free from her. âI miss them, Elsa. Oh god, I miss them so much. This⊠itâs like a miracle and a curse all at once, to see them so happy, to see them just one more time, but it hurts,â she cried, crumbling in on herself.
Elsa leaned over and wrapped both arms around Annaâs shoulders. âI know, Anna. I know. The first night I saw all these, I was⊠I barely slept. I couldnât tear myself away from watching, from looking to see what kind of life they had. And if Iâm honest, I envied that Elsa so much, to still have her parents. I⊠I almost said yes when that Anna offered to have me speak to them. But they would have known immediately that I wasnât their Elsa.â
âI didnât really give her a chance to speak to me. I guess I missed out on the opportunity to get to know another version of you,â her sister said, looking down at her hands as her cheeks burned in shame.
âWell, you did have her in a dungeon and at the time, your reasons probably seemed good. But yes, Iâm curious about her as well. I wonder how much we had in common, if we shared the same traits. Clearly, we shared the same appreciation for you,â she chuckled.
As their laughter subsided, Elsaâs stomach churned. There was one video she desperately wanted to show Anna, but she was unsure how her sister would take it, especially since Anna had seemed distant ever since their return from the ice palace. Anna had spent an entire day away from the palace, apparently needing space.
âThereâs⊠one video in particular that⊠that I thought you might⊠well, that shows a lot of all of us.â Elsa laid the phone down on the bedspread for a moment. âBut⊠itâs very much a video about their romantic relationship so if you donât want to watch it, if it makes you uncomfortable, I understand.â
Anna laid a hand on top of Elsaâs trembling leg, confident in her movement this time. âItâs okay, Elsa. Whatever it is, itâs okay. I⊠Iâm just glad to see them so happy, to know thereâs a world out there somewhere where weâre all happy and together. I canât explain it but⊠that makes me feel better, somehow, to know that theyâre alive and happy. So⊠itâs okay.â She smiled and stroked her fingers through Elsaâs bangs briefly, making her older sister blush.
âA-all right.â
She pressed play.
The screen started black and then the unmistakable melody of Pachelbelâs Canon in D began playing as the setting came into view. The view was of a boat of some kind, a wide open floor with a covered roof, similar to some of the steamships Anna had spied in Arendelleâs harbor from time to time. A green metal arch decorated with lilies and roses was in the center of the room, and an elderly man dressed in a fine suit with white hair in a short ponytail stood under the arch.
Two lines of women filed in, three on each side of the arch. One side wore long, plum-colored dresses, while the other side wore the same kind of dress, but in a royal blue. Once the women filed in, the camera jostled as a pair of people walked by it on either side. Anna recognized the outfits from some of the still photos; Iduna had just walked by with that worldâs Anna; both were in forest green dresses, though that Annaâs dress was trimmed with gold.
After a few more moments, Agnar and that Elsa walked the camera. Anna gasped at how beautiful Elsa looked, a far cry from the woman in her dungeon not more than a week ago. A brief flash of guilt surged through her, laced with regret at not trying to get to know her. That Elsa was wearing a stunning white dress with cerulean diamond patterns woven into it; the dress was off the shoulders and almost backless. Anna swallowed, her mouth suddenly wet with saliva as she watched Agnar escort Elsa to the arch.
This was a wedding. Their wedding.
As the music faded, the priest began to speak. âDearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the joining of Elsa Bernadotte and Anna Beck in marriage. This is not the beginning of a new relationship but an acknowledgment of the next chapter in their lives together. Elsa and Anna have spent years getting to know each other, and we now bear witness to what their relationship has become. Today, they will affirm this bond formally and publicly.â
Anna watched raptly as that Anna clasped her Elsaâs hands carefully, tears welling in both their eyes and cheeks aching from smiling as the priest continued. âToday will mark their transition as a couple not only by celebrating the love between themselves, but by also celebrating the love between all of usâincluding the love of their parents, siblings, extended family, and best friends. Without that love, today would be far less joyous.â
The audience quietly applauded before the priest motioned for silence. He turned to face Elsa first, who was clearly breathing faster than normal, her chest heaving as a small tear ran down one cheek. âElsa, do you take Anna to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, in sorrow and in joy, to have and to hold, from this day forward, as long as you both shall live?â
Elsa squeezed Annaâs hands once before murmuring, âI do.â
The priest turned to Anna. âAnna, do you take Elsa to be your lawfully wedded wife, to love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health, in sorrow and in joy, to have and to hold, from this day forward, as long as you both shall live?â
That worldâs Anna wasnât so different from her. She practically jumped up and down, holding Elsaâs hands, and shouted, âYes, I do! I do I do I do!â to the audienceâs laughter.
As the laughter died down, the priest picked up a small pillow from off to the side holding two rings on it. âA ring is an unbroken circle, with ends that have been joined together, and it represents your union. It is a symbol of infinity, and of your infinite love. When you look at these rings on your hands, be reminded of this moment, your commitment, and the love you now feel for each other.â
âElsa, place the ring on Annaâs finger and repeat after me. Anna, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love with the pledge: to love you today, tomorrow, always, and forever.â
That Elsa repeated the words and tenderly placed the ring on Annaâs finger as she stared longingly in her Annaâs eyes before looking back to the priest.
âAnna, place the ring on Elsaâs finger and repeat after me. Elsa, I give you this ring as a symbol of my love with the pledge: to love you today, tomorrow, always, and forever.â
That Anna shook so much from excitement that for a few brief moments, she ended up dropping and re-catching the ring like an outfielder chasing a pop fly ball before managing to secure it and place it on Elsaâs finger, hurriedly reciting back the priestâs words with an embarrassed grin.
The priest finally broke into a smile. âI now offer this blessing to you both.â He cleared his throat before making a sign with his hands.
âNow you will feel no rain, for each of you will be shelter for the other. Now you will feel no cold, for each will be warmth for the other. Now you will feel no loneliness, for each of you will be companion to the other. Now you are two persons, but there is one life before you. Go now to your dwelling to enter into the days of your life together. And may your days be good and long upon the earth.â
âBy the authority vested in me by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and with the blessing of everyone before us, I now pronounce you married.â
The room broke out into raucous applause; Anna nearly did so herself as she watched the video. She giggled as that Elsa not only kissed her Anna, but dipped her, right out of a fairy tale. After they broke their kiss, Agnar and Iduna had rushed up to hug and kiss both of them, then pose for more photos.
A few more scenes played afterwards; Anna glued her eyes to the tiny screen as she watched that Elsa dance with Agnar in the father-daughter dance, and then watched the couple in their first dance. She giggled aloud to hear Pachelbelâs Canon in D still played hundreds of years in the future, something sheâd thought about for her own wedding someday.
She salivated at the images of food being cooked from a grill off the back of the boat, guests treated to a simple steak dinner, and she marveled at the sight of the four layer cake, perched precariously on a table near the edge of the boat. They appeared to be on a river rather than the ocean, but the gentle rise and fall of the sides told her the cake could still topple. It was certainly different than how they did wedding cakes in Arendelle; kransekake was the preferred pastry because it was much more stable.
After the coupleâs first dance, they made their way to the cake and that Elsa picked up a long knife. That Anna hugged her from behind and placed her hand on Elsaâs as they cut the cake. Anna marveled at the sight of the cake - a vivid red inside. Subconsciously she licked her lips, wondering what such a bold red cake tasted like. After cutting into it, that Elsa took a forkful and turned to face her bride, then gently fed her to the applause of the audience before returning the favor.
The video faded to black and came to a stop. Anna wiped tears of happiness away from her eyes, moved by the entire ceremony. Both sisters just stared at the album screen on the iPhone for a long moment.
âSo⊠Mama and Papa⊠they looked so happy. And that worldâs Anna and Elsa⊠they looked so happy, too,â Anna murmured, the images of the happy couple kissing seared into her mind. She wondered how Elsaâs face looked when sheâd kissed her in the dining room the other day. Was it expectant? Just as happy? Nervous? She couldnât remember with clarity, and she wished she could, her fingers touching her lips.
After her walk across Arendelle yesterday, Anna had been troubled, wondering what their parents would think. It was obvious Elsa brought her feelings from the future, from the other world back with her and some of those feelings had transferred to Anna. But it was equally obvious to Anna that sheâd loved her sister for a very long time. No one spends their entire childhood pining for another, sitting outside their door, devoting every day to making gifts, having conversations, and trying to be siblings despite the circumstances without also being in love in some way.
âWhat are you thinking, Anna?â
âJustâŠwatching them. Watching Mama and Papa - I know theyâre not our Mama and Papa but they also are, you know? Watching them so happy at seeing their girls get married⊠itâŠâ she trailed off, blushing, alternating between staring at Elsa and averting her eyes.
âGo on.â
âI-â
Elsa rubbed the back of Annaâs hand. âItâs okay. Whatever it is you want to say, itâs okay, Anna. I wonât judge you or think badly of you.â
Anna looked up, gazing into her sisterâs cerulean eyes before whispering, âIt almost feels like⊠like theyâre giving their blessing to how I feel, from beyond the grave.â
Elsaâs eyes widened as her breath caught. She didnât dare hope that Anna felt the same way. âHow you feel?â
âHow⊠how I feel about you, Elsa. How I always have.â
Elsa cleared her throat. âHow⊠how do you feel, Anna?â
âI- I think I might be a little bit in love with you. Maybe⊠maybe more than a bit.â
A gasp was all Anna heard as Elsa just stared at her sister, trembling. âIâŠâ
Anna took her sisterâs hand and traced gentle circles along the knuckles, remembering the reaction it incited the last time she did that. âItâs okay, Elsa. Just like I told you when we were up on the North Mountain, whatever you want to say, you wonât scare me or lose me or anything. Iâll always be here for you, and now you know I have many more reasons for that. And Iâm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable.â
Elsa exhaled, her whole body relaxing as she did. âYou didnât, Anna. I was afraid to say anything after⊠after how you reacted in the dining room the other day. Even though you told me on the mountain that it was fine, I wasnât sure if it was really fine or if you were just trying to reassure me.â
Anna nodded and pulled Elsa into a brief side hug before clasping hands. âIt was - and is - really fine.â
âI- I struggled when I was in the future. To keep straight which Anna was which, because so much of who she was, you are also: strong, brave, honest, loving, beautifuller,â she said with a wink, âand above all else, kind. I fell in love with both of you at the same time, I think, and when I came back here, that hadnât changed. I was still in love with you, every version of you.â
Anna stood up and opened the balcony doors to let the cool morning air and bright sunshine in, before reciting all sheâd thought about on her walk around Arendelle the previous day as she paced in front of the doors. How Elsa was her light in the darkness, the other half of her heart, her happily ever after.
âSo⊠what now? I love you, and Iâm in love with you. It sounds like youâre in love with me,â Elsa whispered, staring into Annaâs eyes as she held Annaâs hands, savoring the warmth of her soft skin.
âI donât know? I mean, I havenât exactly had the greatest successes with romance, you know,â Anna grinned sheepishly as Elsa snorted in agreement. âBut⊠I think Mama and Papa would be okay with it - with us - and Iâm willing to give it a try if you are.â
Elsa nodded as she drew Anna into a tight embrace, their bodies pressed against each other. âIâm willing to give it a try, too.â
Authorâs Notes
Red velvet cake wasnât invented until 1943, so canon Anna would have had no frame of reference for what such a vivid red colored cake would have tasted like.
The blessing that the priest gives in the wedding ceremony is and has been misattributed to various indigenous peoples over the decades, but it comes from a 1943 novel, Blood Brothers, written by Elliott Arnold. Arnold, a non-indigenous American, later stated that it was entirely fictional and had no basis in any actual traditions by peoples of the First Nations.
Future Elsa's last name, Bernadotte, is a nod to the Norwegian royal family's name. The Bernadotte lineage ruled Norway from 1818 to 1905.
There are two more chapters left in the main story before we get to the epilogues! Thank you for leaving your reviews and comments, and your feedback about the âdirectorâs cutâ alternate version. Since it clocks in at 17,000 words, I may either make it a REALLY big epilogue, or at least an epilogue in a couple of pieces.
Join The Party
Enjoyed this story? Want to meet fellow readers and discuss? Join the Elsanna Shenanigans community on Discord at discord.gg/TU9NpnH (copy and paste that URL for AO3 friends, go to discord dot gg slash TU9NpnH for FFN friends).
As always, please review, kudos, comment, like, follow, all that good stuff. I appreciate it.
Chapter 19: Planting Seeds
Summary:
âI wish I had your confidence. I just feel like⊠Iâm still worried. We can do so much good, but also so much harm with what we know, what we could know. I donât want to put us in any danger.â
Chapter Text
Chapter 19: Planting Seeds
âPass the salt please,â Elsa asked as she inspected her scrambled eggs on toast, carefully prepared exactly the way she liked it; eggs barely set, mixed with a spoonful of heavy cream and topped with minced chives, on darkly toasted landbroed, a hearty rye bread.
Anna smiled and slid the salt cellar over to her sister, who spooned a tiny amount onto her eggs. Though sheâd never told her, Anna had something of an obsession with watching Elsa eat, ever since they were little. It had been drilled into them by their royal tutors to eat with the etiquette and comportment expected of royal family members, and Elsa lived up to those ideals on a daily basis with the grace of a prima ballerina. Meanwhile, the lessons had⊠left less of an impression on Anna, a fact that her sister secretly enjoyed, even as she publicly scolded her for doing things like making toasts with beer or leaving her fork with the tines up on her plate.
âSo.â
âSoâŠ?â Anna laughed. âWhatâs on your mind, sis?â
âI was just⊠thinking about what we talked about yesterday,â Elsa began to blush, pink creeping up her neck. âIt was⊠different sleeping with you last night.â Elsa savored the memory of snuggling against Anna, their bodies fitting together perfectly, Annaâs warmth and her innate coolness the perfect match.
âBut a good different, right?â
Elsa nodded. âYes, definitely. Itâs⊠I donât know how to explain it. Just knowing how you feel, it makes our closeness seemâŠâ
âCloser? I feel that way too.â Anna reached over and patted Elsaâs hand. âIâve always wanted to be as close to you as possible. Even when Mama and Papa had you lock yourself away, I still tried to be as close as I could.â Brief memories flashed through Annaâs mind, long days and nights leaning against Elsaâs door, the two of them talking and slipping notes under the door.
âIs⊠is it okay to kiss you?â
Anna chuckled and scrunched up her face, pushing her lips out in an outrageous pout as though she were mimicking a five year old. âKiss me, baby!â
Elsa pinched the bridge of her nose before scrubbing her palm down her face. âThatâs⊠not exactly conducive to a romantic kiss, Anna.â Deciding to have a bit of fun, she channeled her magic and made her lips icy cold, then planted a kiss squarely on Annaâs lips and pressed into her.
âELSAAAAA! Thatâs so cold, you stinker!â Anna pulled away and leaned over, dunking her entire mouth into her cup of tea to warm up. âTalk about not romantic! Iâve heard of giving someone the cold shoulder, but thatâs another thing entirely.â A thought ran through Annaâs head and she immediately turned beet red.
âAnna? Are you okay? Youâre⊠really red in the face. Whatâs wrong?â
âNothing! Absolutely nothing, Iâm fine. Iâm totally fine. Yup,â she said, her voice an octave higher than normal. âI totally was not thinking about how awful that would feel if your mouth were⊠um, like you were showing me the other day with those snow figures.â
Elsaâs blush joined Annaâs as her fork skidded across her plate with an ear-piercing squeal.
âSorry!â Anna squeaked. âI didnât mean⊠uh.. yeah, sorry,â she stammered. She quickly turned back to her own breakfast, a pile of smoked salmon on top of toast as she leafed through some papers sheâd brought with her. Despite Elsa having been back for more than a few days, Anna still had a backlog of administrative things to help her sister process as part of her short-lived reign. She cleared her throat. âSo⊠on a completely different topicâŠâ
âThank you!â
Anna laughed at Elsaâs rapid acceptance of the topic change. âBjorbekkâs had another outbreak of disease. I donât know what in the world is going on there. Thatâs the second time this year.â She pulled out a single sheet of paper from the folio their advisors had prepared for their morning reading and handed it to her sister. âWhat do you think is causing all those problems?â
Elsa read over the report describing villagers falling ill, with vivid descriptions of stomach pains and diarrhea; some children were badly dehydrated and efforts by townspeople to heal them with herbal poultices were having no effect. No one seemed to know what the cause was; no grain had been reported moldy, and no other villages nearby seemed to be affected. Some had even begun muttering about superstitions, evil spirits from the forests north of the kingdom possessing the village.
âWhat aboutâŠâ Anna started before clapping her hands over her mouth, earning her an arched eyebrow from her sister.
âWhat about what?â
Anna looked around the room; all the staff save Kai were currently away. She leaned over to whisper in Elsaâs ear. âWhat about the black mirror?â As she did, she motioned with her eyes towards the door. Surely, in her mind, there had to be something on that mystical object that could lend some insight into their kingdomâs plight.
âThe⊠oh.â Elsaâs eyes widened for a moment before the barest hint of a smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. âLetâs⊠letâs finish breakfast and then we can talk about it some more, all right?â
After finishing off their breakfast and coffee (which Elsa was thankful for the palaceâs coffee imports; the coffee of the future was incredibly strong and bitter, and she still had no idea what a Starbuck even was), they headed for her chambers. Once inside, she locked the door and froze the lock for additional privacy, then opened her antechamberâs lockbox, withdrawing the smartphone. The glowing snowflake inside had kept the solar power pack fully charged, which in turn had kept the phone ready for use despite being far out of its time.
âWhat do you suppose we should use to solve this mystery?â Anna asked, looking once more at the colorful array of icons on the home screen as they sat on the bed, thighs pressed against each other. She wondered just what the device was capable of; everything Elsa had shown her so far was magic, from knowledge of the future to seeing their parents alive, after a fashion.
âLetâs start with the encyclopedia on here again.â Elsa opened up the Kiwix app and started searching through it, leafing through page after page of bewildering terms. Two hours later, she settled on one topic that seemed to fit the description best. âWhat do you think about this?â she said, holding the phone towards her sister.
Anna squinted at the screen, reading aloud. âCholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting and muscle cramps may also occur. I donât know what some of these words mean, but it sounds like whatâs happening. Hang on a second.â She leaned back to grab a pencil and some note paper from the nightstand.
âListen to this,â she said, pointing at a paragraph on the screen as Elsa looked on, âIf commercially produced oral rehydration solutions are too expensive or difficult to obtain, solutions can be made. One such recipe calls for 1 liter of boiled water, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 6 teaspoons of sugar, and added mashed banana for potassium and to improve taste.â She scribbled down notes furiously. âI wish we had this written down in book format. Weâd be able to share this much more easily.â
Anna ripped off the sheet of paper, folded it, and carefully handed the phone back to Elsa. âIâve never seen a banana, and I have no idea what they taste like, but itâs definitely a fruit of some kind. I think I remember reading something from London about how red they are. We could use cloudberries or something as a substitute, right? Theyâre a reddish fruit.â
âI would imagine so,â Elsa nodded as she put the phone back in the lockbox and secured it, its power pack still generating power from the magical snowflake that glowed in the container. She occasionally wondered what other things could be powered from it, a line of thought that kept her awake the other night. So much of what sheâd seen in the future relied on electricity. âLetâs have Kai prepare a royal coach for Bjorbekk.â
Half an hour later, with Annaâs notes in hand and a wagon of salt, sugar, and two barrels of cloudberries, the sisters headed for Bjorbekk, an easy hourâs ride away. The royal coach shone in the morning light, purple and gold trim - and cavalry alongside - indicating the importance of the passengers. The crocus flag fluttered from the corners of the coach as they headed out of the palace gates.
As the countryside passed by, Elsa chewed her lower lip, staring out the coachâs window. âDo you suppose using this knowledge is going to cause problems?â
Anna shook her head. âI doubt it. We havenât said where it came from. For all anyone knows, it could have been brought by, I donât know, a traveling Franciscan Friar from Prussia or something.â She took Elsaâs hand into her own, squeezing it gently. âHey. I promise everything will be okay.â
âI wish I had your confidence. I just feel like⊠Iâm still worried. We can do so much good, but also so much harm with what we know, what we could know. I donât want to put us in any danger.â
âNo one else besides us knows where this came from, Elsa. And Iâm certainly not going to tell anyone. Plus, even if I talk in my sleep, youâll be the only one who hears it,â she laughed as she spoke quietly into Elsaâs ear, the noise of the rocky road drowning out their speech to anyone nearby. âLook at it this way,â a hint of a smirk forming Annaâs lips, âIf we can use the knowledge for good, pull off a few minor miracles, and keep our people safe and happy, we wonât attract any unwanted attention, right? Weâre not going to go, I donât know, go revive the Napoleonic Wars or something crazy. And then they wonât give two thoughts about⊠you know⊠the other thing.â She wagged her index finger back and forth between her chest and Elsaâs.
âOh. Oh, yes. Thatâs⊠thatâs true.â Elsa drew the curtains closed, ensuring none of their guards could see inside the carriage. She leaned over to whisper in Annaâs ear. âI suppose I owe you a proper good morning kiss.â
Anna smirked fully this time. âYes you do, you stinker.â She turned her head, pulling her ear away from Elsaâs lips and replacing it with her own lips and gently pressed their lips together. The moment she made contact, her cheeks flushed and she felt dizzy, enjoying the sensation of Elsaâs soft, cool skin against hers.
Elsa gently ran her fingers through Annaâs hair, relishing Annaâs warmth. She swiped her tongue against Annaâs lower lip and this time, instead of panicking, Anna sighed happily. âMmm. I like kissing you, Elsa.â
They parted their lips a little more, caressing each otherâs tongues. Anna felt an explosion of warmth surge through her as they explored each otherâs mouths. For a moment, all Anna could think was how amazing she felt. Elsaâs touch was so tender and caring, her lips so sweet.
After a few minutes, they broke apart, lips swollen and cheeks flushed. Both sisters straightened out their clothes and re-did their hair, just as the wagon came to a halt. One of the guards knocked on the door, letting them know theyâd arrived in Bjorbekkâs town square.
The townspeople - those who were healthy enough to do so - came out of their homes and knelt down, bowing their heads. The town mayor, a grey-haired matron named Martha SkĂ„rland, greeted the royals nervously, shaking as she knelt. âQueen Elsa! Princess Anna! We are beyond honored that you have made the trip to see our humble little town personally. I- I thought you would just send some aid from the palace, not that you would be here in person. Please forgive us, we havenât made any preparations-â
Elsa smiled, motioning for the elder to stand. âMayor SkĂ„rland, please. Thereâs no need to worry, and I apologize for not letting you know in advance. We just⊠wanted to see the situation for ourselves, and offer some assistance. Where is the town doctor?â
Mayor SkĂ„rland turned her head to nod at one of the smaller houses in the town square. âReinertâs in his home - heâs taken ill as well, can barely get out of bed. Heâs no closer to determining whatâs happened here, says itâs got to be spirits or something.â Her eyes darted around the village, as though looking for ghosts.
The sisters walked around the town as a small crowd of townspeople followed them. As Elsa and the mayor spoke about the situation, Anna looked at the town well nestled in a small gully just on the edge of town, a small stream trickling nearby. She recalled what sheâd read on Elsaâs phone earlier. âMayor SkĂ„rland, has it been especially rainy lately?â
âYes, Princess. Weâve had a good week of rain, which weâre all thankful for. The crops needed it.â
âAnd where do the townspeople dump their chamber pots and such?â
The mayor laughed. âForgive me, Princess. Most of us arenât wealthy enough to afford such conveniences. No, most folks just have outhouses.â
Anna looked again at the town. Most of it was perched on the side of a hill; the mentioned outhouses were typically behind each familyâs home. She put the pieces together based on her earlier reading; heavy rains would wash sewage down the hill, where wastewater would pool and contaminate the town well. She pursed her lips together as the party walked back to the center of town. âMayor SkĂ„rland, is that the only well in town?â
SkĂ„rland shook her head. âNo, weâve got probably a half dozen wells, but that oneâs the largest by far. Most of the town uses it because it never runs dry.â
Anna gently tugged on Elsaâs elbow as the mayor made the rounds, visiting families door to door. âOkay, remember what we read this morning. The sewage is contaminating the well, so if we can get them to use wells that arenât in the valley, thatâll help. That, boiling water, and making sure everyone affected uses the recipe we found - that should be enough,â she whispered.
Elsa smiled and placed a hand on Annaâs upper arm. âYouâre amazing, Anna. I know you donât want to be, but you would have made a fine queen for our people.â She cleared her throat. âEveryone, if you could step a little closer please?â As the crowd gathered, Elsa relayed what Anna had found and gave instructions that everyone was to use wells that were uphill from the valley until the crisis was over, and every house should boil all the water before drinking it. As she explained how to make the rehydration solution theyâd read about, the royal guards offloaded the wagonâs supplies.
For the next few hours, they helped the townsfolk boil large cauldrons of water over a roaring wood fire in the center of town. Elsa summoned a giant snow golem, similar in size to Marshmallow, who lifted each cauldron off the fire and placed it on the ground before heaving another cauldron in place. Once the water was off the boil, Anna added in the correct amounts of sugar, salt, and cloudberries the villagers were mashing in large bowls. Mayor SkĂ„rlandâs aides took clean pots and glass bottles, bottling up the potions and having townsfolk distribute them to the afflicted houses. By mid-afternoon, theyâd made enough rehydration solution for each person to have 2-3 liters per day for 7 days, more than enough to keep them hydrated and out of substantial danger as their infections waned.
âThank you, Your Majesty! Itâs so gracious of you to provide us with medicine and aid,â the mayor gushed, bowing. âHow can we repay the Crown for your favor?â
Elsa smiled and shook her head. âThereâs no need to repay anything. We will always do our best to help the people of Arendelle in any way we can. Remember our directions and follow them to the letter, please. And keep that recipe handy in case others fall ill. In fact, once Reinart is feeling better, make sure he sends it - unaltered, please - to the nearby towns.â The townsfolk cheered and clapped as the sisters prepared to depart. Elsa took one last look at the supplies being put in the tiny hamletâs town hall, which was little more than a small house.
As Anna watched her sister deliver final instructions to the town, she remembered something theyâd talked about that morning. She turned to the Royal Guard. âCaptain Masserud, can you take the carriage and two horses back to the palace, but leave two horses for the Queen and I to ride back?â
âI would strongly advise against that, Your Highness. Our role is to protect you and Her Majesty. This far out into the countryside, we canât discount the risk of bandits,â the young blond captain stammered.
Anna laughed. âCaptain, with due respect, my sisterâs powers ensure that anyone who might have ill intentions will receive whatâs coming to them, especially since itâs only an hourâs ride back to home. Why donât you ride ahead of us by 15 minutes or so, make sure the way is clear. If thereâs any trouble, you can simply wait for us on the side of the road, all right?â
âOf course, Your Highness, as you command,â Masserud nodded, before directing the guardsmen to untack two of the horses and prepare them for riders instead.
A few minutes later, Elsa caught up with her sister, looked at the horses, and arched an eyebrow.
âWe have some things to discuss that I felt were best on our own, sis,â Anna smiled. She mounted her horse, one of two dun Norwegian Fjord horses whose bloodline had been in Arendelleâs royal family for generations. As Elsa mounted her horse, Anna pulled out her pocket watch, noting the time that the royal carriage and guard had gone ahead. After fifteen minutes, the sisters set out for the palace.
âSo what did you want to talk about that we couldnât in the coach, Anna?â
âItâs about the knowledge on the black mirror,â Anna said, swiveling her head around to make sure no one was in sight as they rode along the dusty road, lush green oak and birch forests lining it. The warm afternoon breeze rustled the leaves, the first hints of summertime on the way. Though it was early evening, the sun wouldnât set until after 8:30 PM, so they had plenty of daylight for the ride back.
âWhat about it?â
âRemember this morning I said it would be handy to have all that knowledge in book form?â
Elsa nodded as they broke their horses into a working trot. âIt would.â
âWhat if it was? What if we had someone transcribe as much of the knowledge as possible into books? We could store those in the Royal Library and then not need to refer to the source as much.â
âWe canât let anyone else know that it exists, Anna. You know that.â
Anna smirked good-naturedly. âNo other people, I know. But⊠could you make someone to do it? When you conjured that Marshmallow in the village to help out with the cauldrons, I got to thinking. You made Olaf, and he can read and write, more or less. Could you make something like that, something that isnât a person but can still do the task?â
Elsaâs eyebrows shot up. âI- I have no idea. I suppose we could try when we get back to the palace.â She worried her lower lip between her teeth. âThat would solve a lot of issues. We could start sharing the knowledge without having to worry about people finding out the real source of it, at least for things like medicine. And we wouldnât have to pick and choose which knowledge we made use of, or cloister ourselves in the palace to frantically write things down. I donât know how long that future technology will keep working.â
âAnd frankly, we need to learn as much as we can as well - and having books sure would be easier than us huddling around the little thing. Not that I mind huddling next to you,â she replied with a wink.
âI donât mind it, either.â
After a half hour on the trail of light conversation and companionable quiet, watching the world go by, Elsa spoke up again.
âAnna?â
âHmm?â
Elsaâs posture tensed with nervous energy. She glanced at her sister, who returned the look. âI- I love you, Anna.â
Anna gave a gentle tug on her reins to move her horse closer. âI love you too, sis. What brought that on?â
âI was thinking⊠how do I say this? I was thinking I might like to do some of that trying we talked about the other day.â
âWait, what? What trying?â
Elsaâs cheeks pinked. âRemember we said weâd try being romantic?â
âOh, oh yeah, we did say that!â
Elsa reached over and grabbed Annaâs hand, bringing it briefly to her lips before gripping her horseâs reins again. âIâd⊠Iâd like to try that. That and⊠more. If youâd be willing to try with me.â
âYou meanâŠ?â Anna started, her eyes widening, âUmm⊠the⊠snow stuff?â
âOnly if you want to,â Elsa murmured, unable to hold Annaâs gaze. She turned to look down the road, her cheeks aflame now.
This time, Anna reached across to grab Elsaâs hand, bringing it to her lips. âYes. Yes, I would like to try.â She playfully nipped Elsaâs index finger with her teeth before Elsa had a chance to pull her hand away. âIâd like to try with you very much, sis.â
They both spurred their horses at the same time, picking up the pace a little on the trot to get back to the palace faster.
Authorâs Notes
Bananas were known to Europe as early as the 16th century, but no Norwegian had seen a banana until 1905. Additionally, bananas up to that point were red in color and not sweet; they were like modern-day plantains. The sweet banana was first developed in 1836 but didnât become popularly known until 1876.
Cholera first came to Norway in 1832; they had a massive outbreak in 1853 that killed thousands of people in the capital.
Modern salt and pepper shakers were invented in 1925. Prior to that, folks used cellars, mainly because it was difficult to prevent salt from clumping.
Starbucks, named after the character of Starbuck from Moby Dick, was written in 1851 and so Elsa still would have had no frame of reference for the term.
Bjorbekk is a real city, about 10 kilometers southwest from Arendal, Norway. Today it takes about 12 minutes by car; I estimated the time in a horse-drawn wagon to be roughly that of pedestrian speed, anywhere between 35-75 minutes. The roads in Norway are notoriously in rough shape because of the cold climate, even in the modern era.
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Chapter 20: The End
Summary:
âI know what you mean. No secrets between us, even if we have to keep them from other people.â
Chapter Text
Chapter 20: The End
Anna shuffled backwards into the bedroom wall, her back pressing against the stone as Elsaâs body pushed firmly against her. She couldnât tell if she was kissing or being kissed, but the feeling overwhelmed her with joy nonetheless. Cool hands glided down her back as Elsaâs palms settled on the small of her back.
Every touch, every stroke sent electric sensations through her body. Her eyes slowly shut as she felt the cold from Elsaâs body flowing all around her, a stimulating chill that easily penetrated her nightgown. Anna could feel the rise and fall of Elsaâs chest, her breath cool on Annaâs neck as she nuzzled her.
She shivered as she felt Elsaâs fingers walk over her hips and onto the front of her thighs. Anna arched her back, trying to feel as much as she could, bring herself as close to Elsa as she couldâŠ
⊠and something in the wall moved. Anna shot forward away from the wall, shattering the moment as she yelped. Both sisters brushed their hands down their bodies, smoothing out their nightgowns as a hidden door opened. Stale air rushed from it; Elsa held up a hand to illuminate it with a glowing snowflake.
âWhat- did you know this was here, Elsa?â
Elsa shook her head, the flush in her cheeks receding as their passions cooled. âIâve never seen this before.â She stepped forward and saw that the hidden door opened to a dark, narrow stone staircase. âThis must have been here since the castle was built.â
They descended the stairs cautiously, Elsaâs magic illuminating the narrow corridor. At the bottom of the stairs was an ordinary wooden door with a now-rusted lock securing it. Elsa touched her finger to it, ice flowing into the mechanism and probing the lockâs gears. With a twist of her finger, the lock sprang open and the door creaked as it let them in.
The sisters walked into what looked like a storage room at first. The walls were lined with cluttered bookshelves, scrolls and manuscripts covering every surface. In the center of the room was a large table with books piled high on it and a long-dry inkwell and quill pen. Dried herbs and other magical paraphernalia lined a second, smaller table against the wall.
âWhoa⊠look at all this,â Elsa murmured.
âIâm looking!â
Anna moved around the room and found a small chest on the floor, half-buried beneath more tomes. She gingerly pushed on the lid and found it unlocked; inside, she lifted out what appeared to be a purple scarf or shawl. Patterns of diamonds were embroidered all over the edges, and it smelled faintly of lily of the valley. A memory surfaced; Anna recalled that Iduna loved the smell of lily of the valley and would often wear a sprig of it in her hair. She pressed the shawl to her face and inhaled, remembering her motherâs kind eyes.
âWhat do you suppose this is?â
Anna looked around. âIt almost looks like a study of some kind. Elsa, look - there on the desk,â she pointed towards a small leather-bound book with a bronze lock on the cover.
Elsa touched the lock and it sprang open easily. Inside, they found drawings of magical runes and languages they barely recognized. âThis is some sort of journal.â
Anna scooted over next to her sister, perching her chin on Elsaâs shoulder. âI can find no record of a human with power like hers, but for the ancient myths with their tragic fates. Wait a minute, Elsa. This isnât Fatherâs handwriting. This is Motherâs! They were⊠they must have been studying your magic, trying to figure out how it worked.â
âI wish they had found some answers,â Elsa sighed, looking at the tiny journal in her hands.
âAre you thinking what Iâm thinking?â
âI- Iâm honestly not sure, Anna. What are you thinking?â
Anna spun around in the middle of the small room, accidentally knocking over a few scrolls here and there. âThis⊠this room would be perfect for my idea from yesterday!â
âWe⊠we have the bedroom for that, Anna,â Elsa muttered, feeling warmth surge up her neck and onto her cheeks.
âWait, what? No, not that, Elsa!â Anna giggled. âI mean⊠youâre right, we do have the bedroom, and weâll go back upstairs in just a minute to⊠you know, pick up where we left off, but I mean on the ride back to the palace. Remember when I said we need all that knowledge from the black mirror in book form? This would be the perfect place for one of your snow creations to work!â
Elsaâs eyes widened. âOf course! And since no one else knows this room is here, itâs the perfect place to keep it, too.â She waved her hands and strings of snowflakes lined the ceiling, casting the room into a soft blue-white light. âLet me go get everything and we can set it up.â
A few minutes later, Anna and Elsa lugged the safe from the antechamber down the stairs, placing it on the heavy workbench.
âI still donât know how youâre that strong, Anna. I could barely make the thing budge,â Elsa panted. âNow, letâs see what we can do.â She reached out her hand, clasping Annaâs, and focused on the thought of a living snow creature like Olaf or Marshmallow. Within moments, snowflakes began to swirl around her, coalescing into three tiny snowgies like the ones sheâd accidentally created during Annaâs birthday.
Anna gasped. âTheyâre- theyâre tiny snowmen with working hands!â She peered at the dwarven snowmen as they sat motionless on the desk.
Elsa closed her eyes and thought intensely about what she wanted them to do, then placed the phone on the tableâs surface. Immediately, the snowgies grabbed the quill pen and a sheaf of paper, attempting to write. After a moment, they stopped and looked quizzically at her.
âOH! Of course.â Elsa cast another spell, filling the dry inkwell with water. The snowgies, directed by Elsaâs consciousness, swiped the Kiwix app open to a random page and began to write; one held the pen, one held the paper, and one swiped and scrolled.
âHow do they know what to do?â Anna asked, puzzled at their ability to read and navigate the mystical device.
âThey⊠theyâre alive, but not fully conscious. I can see what theyâre seeing, and Iâm almost giving them directions mentally, like whispering to them the general idea of what I want them to do.â She watched them hard at work, writing faster than she could, as they began to fill up the sheets of paper. âTheyâre starting with medicine and famine prevention; I figure thatâs probably going to be the most immediately useful thing for our people.â
Elsa walked over to a shelf and grabbed several inkwells, all of which had dried out, and refilled each, capping them with ice. As the snowgies worked, the ice would slowly melt and make each new bottle available. She ensured they had as much paper as was in the room, several crates of it. âIâll probably need to check in on them every day. Weâre also going to need to order more paper and ink, I suspect,â she smiled.
Anna nodded. âIâll make sure Kai has some on order. Now that we know about this room, we can keep everything down here instead of in your antechamber. Now,â she said with a wry grin, âwe have some unfinished business upstairs.â Anna grabbed her sisterâs hand, made sure the door to the hidden chamber was locked, and pulled Elsa back up to the bedroom. As the stone wall settled back into place, Anna tackled her sister onto the bed and began kissing her again.
âAm I supposed to be this sore the next day?â Anna whispered at the dinner table the following evening. âI feel like⊠like I was rolling my face around in gravel!â
A glob of gravy went flying across the room as Elsa reacted in shock to her sisterâs question, her hands losing control of her fork and knife, her roast now bearing a jagged cut across the meat. âAnna!â She swiveled her head around to ensure they were still alone. âYou were awfully vigorous in kissing me yesterday, so yes, you probably have some bruising,â she whispered across the table.
âItâs still so weird to think that your first time was with a different version of me. Like, should I be jealous? Is she jealous of me somehow in that other world?â Anna shook her head as she spread butter on her toast.
Elsa continued coughing, trying to catch her breath. âBy first time, you mean my first time⊠ah. Ahem. Well no, you shouldnât be jealous. Youâre different people in some ways, and in other ways - the important ones - youâre the same person.â
âLike what kind of ways?â
Elsaâs gaze unfocused as she mentally compared the two. âYouâre both kind. Bold. You both rush into things, you both wear your heart on your sleeve. Youâre both good people.â As her thoughts wandered, she suddenly blushed and choked up, causing her sister to quirk an eyebrow. âYou both⊠um, tend to kiss and⊠hands, hands in the same places,â she choked.
âOh. Oh! Ha ha⊠I uh, I see what you mean. Ahem. Sorry, I didnât mean to embarrass you so much, sis.â Anna hid behind her wine glass, her eyes peering over the gold-trimmed crystal rim. âSo⊠uh⊠howâs the writing project coming along?â She lowered her voice to a whisper. âIs that what weâre calling it? I canât remember!â
Elsa rolled her eyes with a small smirk. âWe discussed it last night, Anna. Donât you remember?â
âIâŠdonât remember that. There are other things occupying my memory of last night, Elsa!â she hissed with a blush as she flailed at her body with her hands.
âYes, the new book project. Itâs coming along. In fact,â she lifted a sheaf of papers from the adjacent chair at the table, âitâs coming along quite nicely, the⊠workers⊠finished quite a lot today while we were in court.â
Elsa stood up, carefully folding her napkin and placing it on the table as she gestured for Anna to follow her, the sheaf of papers under her arm. After a few minutes, they were back in her royal chambers, the door closed to keep out any stray eyes or ears. Elsa made a quiet noise before pushing a bundle of paper to her sister.
Anna put down both wine glasses sheâd carried from the dining room onto the nightstand. âMedicine⊠antibiotics? Whatâs an antibiotic?â she puzzled, leafing through the pages. âDrugs made from a mold⊠cures infections.â Anna looked up. âThis⊠this is a cure for all kinds of things, Elsa. It sounds like it could have saved some lives in that flood we had a few years back, the one with all the brackish waters and people getting infected cuts.â Anna shuddered at the memories of some of the horrific injuries people had sustained and the appalling but necessary treatments needed to save their lives.
She shook her head free of the memories and kept reading. âFertilizer⊠bat guano from caves to be harvested and put on fields along with other manuresâŠ. nitrogen fixation from the air⊠wow. Wheat yield from fertilized fields grew from less than a ton per hectare to 5 tons per hectare, potatoes from 15 tons per hectare to 25 tons. Elsa, thatâs incredible! We could double our food output from our farms, maybe more!â
âWe could, yes.â Elsa sat down on the bed, taking a short sip from her wine glass before handing another sheet of paper to her sister. âRead that.â
Anna nearly spit out the wine in her mouth. âThe Great Swedish Famine of 1867⊠oh my god Elsa.â She kept reading, a tear pooling in her eye. âThose poor people⊠starving to death because it was too cold⊠Thatâs⊠thatâs not too far into the future.â
âIt isnât. Thereâs another famine coming in a couple of years, a smaller one that will likely impact Arendelle too. If we can get our scholars to research some of the things in these notes, we might be able to protect ourselves from it. Certainly we should be asking farmers to plant some extra crops a couple of years before.â
âMaybe we should levy some extra taxes a few years before too, slowly grow the royal coffers so we can have extra aid on hand,â Anna mused as she neatly reassembled all the pages; the snowgies had managed to draft well over 100 pages in the last day as they needed neither food nor rest. âItâs funny⊠all these pages are in your handwriting. I guess they really are your children,â Anna winked.
âAnna! Theyâre not children! Theyâre barely even alive.â
After another sip of her wine, Anna looked at the pile of papers. âWhat if we sort these by subject, then I can take them into the city and have a bookbinder bind them into a single book?â
âItâd be better if they came to the castle. Even though weâre being careful about the origin of these notes, I donât want them to be out of our hands any more than they have to be. In fact, I was thinking, we have the entire eastern wing of the palace that we donât really use any more. What if we set it up as almost a university, a place for people to study some of the notes?â
Anna stood up from the table to look out the bedroomâs French doors. The eastern wing of the palace was mostly memorabilia and storage. Theyâd put many of their parentsâ items there along with all the historical artifacts from the line of Arendelle monarchs of yesteryear. Sheâd spent a fair amount of time there during Elsaâs isolation, but the wing hadnât been a source of particularly good memories, mostly just reliving the past when she had nothing better to do. Turning it into a scholarly pursuit would be a much better use of the space.
âLetâs do it. We can move all the junk in there to some of the storerooms or even out of the palace entirely.â
âAre you sure, Anna? So much of that is familiar to you.â
Anna regarded the icy blue and grey slate tiles covering the roof of the castle, shaded gold in the setting sun. âItâs familiar, but itâs not good memories. Not the kind of memories I want to keep around. Iâd rather make new memories there, have it be a place of hope and growth for us and for Arendelle.â
After a long pause, Elsa moved to join Anna at the window, wrapping her arms around her sisterâs waist. âWhatâs on your mind? You got quiet.â
âDo you think⊠your powers, how long could they last? I mean, your ice.â
Elsa laughed. âWell, itâs been two years since the eternal winter, and my Ice Palace is still standing on the North Mountain. We were just there a couple of days ago and it looked none the worse for wear. Why?â
âKristoff delivers ice so that people can store foods without spoiling too quickly,â Anna murmured, glancing at the sheaf of papers scattered all over the bed. âWhat if⊠what if you did something with your ice palace, maybe expanded it? If it stays cold year round and never meltsâŠâ
Elsa tilted her head. âWhat are you getting at, Anna?â
âI canât stop thinking about that famine. If your powers are strong enough to keep your ice palace totally frozen all year round, even when itâs 17 or 18 degrees outside, then maybe theyâre strong enough for us to stockpile food, right?â
âI⊠suppose so? Iâve never really thought about it.â
Anna turned to face her sister. âIf we started to stockpile food and medicine and goods in your ice palace over the span of a few years, then maybe when these horrible disasters happen, weâll be able to weather them with almost no harm at all. And we wouldnât have to tell anyone we knew what was going to happen - weâd just be doing it slowly, carefully.â
Elsa brushed her hand against Annaâs bicep. âYouâre right. The only thing weâd need to be careful of is making sure outsiders didnât know much about it. The last thing we need is for Weselton or the Southern Isles to try stealing from us during hard times.â
âUgh, youâre right. Still, if you made another couple of Marshmallows, I think that would probably dissuade anyone from looking where theyâre not invited.â She smirked, imagining the look on the Duke of Weseltonâs face if he were to be confronted by one of Elsaâs giant ice golems with meter-long razor talons.
Elsa laughed. âYes, something like that. Iâd still prefer to keep it secret for now, just in case.â
âAs long as itâs not a secret between us.â
Elsa pulled Anna into a tight hug, pressing herself completely against her sister. âIâm so glad we donât have any secrets any more, not between us. When I was in that other world, that Anna and Elsa had so many secrets hidden from each other, and it was slowly destroying them.â
âI know what you mean. No secrets between us, even if we have to keep them from other people.â
Elsa tilted her head. âWhat do you mean?â She was answered with a gentle swipe of Annaâs tongue across her lips. âOh. Oh, yes. Yes, thatâs definitely going to stay secret for some time,â she murmured, pressing her fingers to her lips gently before embracing Anna and returning the kiss.
âBut not forever?â Anna asked quietly, staring into her sisterâs eyes. âBecause⊠I would like for us to eventually not be a secret.â
âI know. And I want that too. I thought about what you said on the ride back to the palace yesterday. If we can provide for our people and avert as many disasters as possible, if we can make Arendelleâs future secure then⊠I think theyâd be tolerant of what the royal family does, so long as it doesnât impact them negatively. Eventually, of course⊠Iâm still only two years into my reign,â she chuckled.
âLong live the Queen!â Anna playfully cried, before wrapping her arms around Elsaâs waist once more, fitting their bodies together. âI hope someday comes sooner rather than later. I mean, you are literally both the Queen and the head of the church, and your word is literally law so⊠you could do pretty much anything you wanted, right?â
Elsa sighed. âWithin reason. People⊠people change slowly, over time. When I think about how the future version of us fell out of love, it wasnât an overnight thing. It took years for it to happen, for them to change how they felt. Changing the minds of our people to accept⊠us, us as more than sisters, will probably take years too.â She gazed out over the town square below, watching Arendelleâs citizens going about their daily lives before turning to face Anna. âWe already had to dismiss one archbishop, remember?â
Anna facepalmed. âGod, yes. He was such an ass for insisting you couldnât be Queen because you were somehow a witch.â She rubbed her hands up and down Elsaâs back, a gentle smirk on her lips as the elder sister shivered at her touch. âLittle did he know how weâd end up.â
âLittle did we know, dear sister,â Elsa cooed. She rested her palms on the newly rebuilt wooden railing and looked towards the sky, relishing the feeling of Anna wrapping her arms around her from behind. âBut I wouldnât have it⊠or you⊠any other way.â
âMe neither, Elsa. I⊠I canât wait to love you for the rest of my life.â She turned her eyes to the sky, following Elsaâs soft gaze. âWell, would you look at thatâŠâ Anna murmured. In the sky above them, the aurora borealis languorously shimmered green and blue against the midnight black skies as the crescent moon shone bright over the horizon. For a moment, Anna felt as though the sky itself were blessing the two of them as an arc of gold lightning shot across the darkness in the shape of a smile.
Authorâs Notes
The secret room was taken directly from one of the deleted scenes from Frozen 2.
This is it, folks, more or less. This is the end of the official story. What comes next are three things.
Epilogue 1: What happened to future!Elsa and future!Anna. Weâll check back in with them.
Epilogue 2: What were the consequences of Elsaâs time travels? Since Elsa jumped into an alternate timeline, weâll skip forward to 2022 in the canon Arendelle timeline, which will be even more canon divergent.
Epilogue 3: That alternate branch story for the second half, incomplete, that I decided I didnât want to do.
Finally, for all those folks who have enjoyed this fic, thank you! If you enjoyed the little historical notes, youâl find my only non-fiction work on AO3, the Frozen Historical Reference Guide, which contains many of these little tidbits Iâve uncovered in my writings.
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As always, please review, kudos, comment, like, follow, all that good stuff. I appreciate it.
Chapter 21: Epilogue 1: 2022
Summary:
For years Iâve wondered if something else was going on, if you had, I donât know, a boyfriend or girlfriend on the side or something. You would just go on all these last minute trips for work, but my other friends who work at agencies donât do that nearly as much as you did. I swore you were having an affair or something, but I could never find any evidence of it
Chapter Text
Epilogue 1: 2022
2022
As the banh mi sandwich hit the ground with a soft thud, the air around the bench shimmered briefly and then a flash of golden lightning swept over it like a splash of water from an amusement park ride. Anna stared as Elsa appeared, wearing what looked like⊠the ugliest grey dress sheâd Ăever seen, like she was wearing a sack. She squinted before gasping at the realization that this was Elsa - her Elsa - back from wherever sheâd been.
For her part, Elsa was curled up in a ball with her eyes squeezed shut, wondering what fresh hell sheâd been delivered to after a week in a very real, very painful dungeon. Her back and legs were covered in bruises from sleeping on a stone floor, her chains and manacles pressing into her. Her hair, normally a lustrous white gold, was a tangled, oily, slightly grey mess, matching her skin. When nothing happened, she opened her eyes to see the ground and her bruised, cut, sore hands; the abrasions on her wrists had become infected after a few days. Without any other thought or consideration to her surroundings, she leaned over and like a feral cat, swiped the half sandwich that was laying on the ground and bit into it.
âOh god, this-â she moaned as she wolfed down the sandwich, finishing it in four ravenous bites, a tear pooling at the corner of her eye.
âAnd I thought I liked sandwiches,â Anna chuckled, delighted at seeing her wife once more in any capacity.
Elsa turned her head, and her face contorted almost comically, whipsawing from elation to anger to fear. âS-stay away from me! Iâm not going back! You canât make me go back!â she hissed, standing up and holding her hands out in front of her. âI wonât go back!â
âElsa? Elsa, whatâs wrong? Itâs me! Itâs Anna!â
Elsaâs head spun around, seeing her surroundings for the first time as she sank to her knees, a sob erupting from her. âAnna! Oh thank god, Iâm home!â She bent over and kissed the ground, then clutched onto Annaâs legs like a drowning man onto flotsam. âYou- you wonât believe what happened to me, Anna! It- I- oh god, I missed you so much! Itâs really you!â
Anna gently returned her wifeâs hug. âItâs okay, Elsa. Iâve got you. Youâre safe. Iâm here, Iâm here,â she repeated, rubbing her hands down Elsaâs back. Mentally, she bristled at the feeling of the coarse cloth dress on her wife. It was so rough, it may as well have been a burlap sack. What had happened to her?
Fat tears pooled in Elsaâs eyes as she clutched to Anna, savoring her warmth after a week bereft of any friendly contact. After her attempt at escaping and subsequent capture, her jailers were much harsher with her. Theyâd made every meal the same, fish and potatoes, and the one time she had complained, the guard spit in it before throwing it into her cell, food splattering all over her. If she never smelled salmon again in her life, sheâd be thankful.
âWh- where are- oh! Weâre by our offices. What- what year is it? Does this- am I making any sense?â she started, looking around frenetically.
âElsa, breathe. Itâs okay. Itâs Saturday morning, itâs 2022. Youâve been gone for almost a week,â Anna said, guiding her back to the bench. âWhatever youâre going to say, I believe you, okay?â
âAll right,â she breathed, leaning her head against Annaâs shoulder. âSo like I said, and I- itâs difficult to believe it even happened. If I didnât have these injuries, I might think it was all a dream. I was somehow back in time, Anna. I traveled back in time somehow to, I donât know when but it was like the Dark Ages. I spent a week - a whole week - in a literal dungeon of some castle. And it was real, Anna, really real! They had me in these heavy iron chains that bruised me so badly,â she offered up her hands and wrists, showcasing the bruising and bloody abrasions from where sheâd strained against them.
Annaâs eyes were as large as saucers. âYou were in a dungeon? Like a real, honest-to-god dungeon, Elsa?â Anna hadnât expected that at all; sheâd assumed that because sheâd gotten along with the past Elsa so well that her Elsa would have done the same with past Anna. âWhat- how did that happen?â She reached down to her backpack and pulled out a small first aid kit, getting to work right away at cleaning and bandaging her wifeâs wounds.
âThey thought I stole their queen or something! It was totally insane, they had people interrogating me, and then they had someone who looked just like you. I thought it was you at first and I went to kiss you, and look!â She pulled up the back of the dress to reveal a mottled pattern of bruises all along her side, a few overlapping her snowflake tattoo. âShe shoved me so hard that I landed on the chains on my back.â
âYeah⊠about thatâŠâ Anna shifted, uncomfortable. âYou didnât steal their queen, but⊠she was here in your place, Elsa.â
âShe⊠what? You mean she was real? I didnât⊠thereâs no way I did what they accused me of.â
Anna shook her head, wondering how much to tell her wife about all that had transpired during the week. Sheâd promised the other Elsa that she would do what needed to be done, make changes to help things get better, but she could feel the pull of old habits tugging at her like a ship circling a whirlpool.
For good or ill, her phone was about to force her hand. It pinged its alarm signal again.
GET TO OFFICE RN - DM
Anna held up her phone and saw Dustyâs emergency alert, summoning the team to the office - presumably to deal with the paranormal storm that had just deposited her wife in front of her. She waged a fierce battle inside her own mind; does she start down the path of clearing the air between them with the biggest secret of all?
As her phone chimed once more with a reminder, Anna tensed her jaw. âY-yes. She was real, she was here, and⊠well, thereâs a lot of things I need to tell you about her. But I have to tell you something important about myself first.â
Elsa looked at her wife, even more confused. âI⊠what?â
âIâd say to sit down, butâŠâ Anna laughed nervously as she looked around to make sure no one was in earshot. âFor the longest time, Iâve kept a secret from you, Elsa. A big one. It was for your own safety, to keep you safe from people who might want to hurt you but⊠it was still keeping a secret, and I should have found some other way.â
âOh my god, Anna. Are you⊠what are you saying?â the blonde asked, confusion clouding her face.
Anna turned around and pulled her shirt up, revealing the lower back holster she was wearing just over the ridge of her hips.
âIs- is that a-â Elsa stammered, her eyes wide as she grimaced, gritting her teeth together. Ever since sheâd done a brief internship in the district attorneyâs office in law school, sheâd loathed guns of any kind with a passion after seeing the damage they inflicted. She and Anna had spent many a meal with her venting about the evils of firearms after hearing some news story on the television.
âIt is. Itâs a gun. My gun.â
âWhy⊠why do you have a gun, Anna? You know how I feel about them.â
She leaned over to grab her backpack and pulled out her wallet. Inside was a small blue badge with her face on it, a number, and the National Clandestine Service agency logo. Anna closed her eyes, exhaled, and then handed the badge to her wife. âI⊠umm, I work for the government, Elsa. As an officer in a⊠in a clandestine agency.â
Elsa blinked, as though Annaâs words had simply bounced off her head. She was saying she was a secret agent? A spy? Something else? After the mental shock of being imprisoned for a week, the added surprise of Anna revealing that she wasnât who sheâd said she was nearly broke her. âWhat does that mean, Anna? What are you trying to tell me?â
âThe ad agency is kind of a front for government work. Iâm a field officer for a clandestine agency of the federal government.â Anna turned her eyes downward, waiting to see what kind of reaction Elsa would have but unable to look at her face, at what it might look like for her to lose her wife just as she got her back. Anticipation and fear choked the breath out of her.
Annaâs words finally sunk in, and Elsa did something Anna didnât expect at all. She smiled. âThat⊠actually makes a lot of sense, Anna. It explains so much!â
âIt- it does?â
âYes!â Elsa broke into a broad grin before squeezing Anna into a tight hug. âFor years Iâve wondered if something else was going on, if you had, I donât know, a boyfriend or girlfriend on the side or something. You would just go on all these last minute trips for work, but my other friends who work at agencies donât do that nearly as much as you did. I swore you were having an affair or something, but I could never find any evidence of it,â she ended quietly, her voice barely above a whisper. âBut you out there as a secret agent makes a lot of sense. I always wondered what that little safe at the back of your closet was, but I didnât want to pry.â
âYou knew about that?â Anna gasped.
âBaby, we have a 700-square foot apartment. I doubt thereâs any place either of us could hide anything for very long,â Elsa grinned. âNow, before we do anything else, can we PLEASE get me something to eat that isnât shitty dungeon food or random sandwiches on the ground? And I donât suppose you have a spare change of clothes in your bag, do you?â
Annaâs phone beeped again; this time, it was a different message.
STAND DOWN. BRIEFING AT 1500. - DM
Anna laughed. âNo, but I have a spare change of clothes at my desk. Why donât I run in and grab them, and then we can get you something to eat, okay?â With Elsaâs vigorous assent, Anna ran inside her office.
After she departed, Elsa turned to look around Copley Square. She gazed at the reflection of the sky in the Hancock Towerâs glass windows, seeing the beautiful clouds and blue skies of Boston. Less than half an hour ago, she was chained to a wall in a grey, dimly lit stone dungeon. She hadnât been sure of anything, not even her own life. All week, sheâd contemplated what it would be like to spend the rest of her days in her cell, suffering through rancid food, wearing sackcloth, and waiting to die of old age or disease from wherever she was.
But the hardest part of all for her was the doppelgĂ€nger of her wife who hadnât shown her face at all after Elsaâs attempted escape. Anna in any form was the only comfort she had, and it felt like her last thread to reality was cut when the monarch no longer stopped by her cell. She pinched herself hard on the leg, trying to determine if this was all just a dream and she was still in that prison, but so far it all felt very real, the pain in her leg included. She coughed out a mix of a sob and a cry of joy that her imprisonment was over.
A few minutes later, Anna came running out, her backpack substantially more full. She smiled at Elsa before steering them both towards the row of restaurants, eyeing the Boloco where sheâd taken the other Elsa. From memory, she knew it didnât have a particularly large public restroom, but the Wendyâs had enough stalls and space to get changed, so they meandered in.
Elsa inhaled as they walked past the registers. âOh god, Anna. That smells so good. You have no idea, they fed me nothing but this terrible fish and potatoes, all cold, for the week. I couldnât stomach it. Before we leave, I am definitely getting a Son of Baconator. No, actually, Iâm going to get a goddamn full size Baconator!â She rushed into the restroom while Anna waited near the door, texting back and forth with the office.
After a few moments, Elsa emerged from the bathrooms wearing dark blue yoga pants and a Disney World t-shirt. Sheâd washed the dirt and grime from her hands and face, tied back her hair and straightened out a few of the knots, and looked much more like herself, to Annaâs delight. With a flourish, Elsa balled up the sackcloth dress and shoved it violently into the trash bin next to the door, practically spitting at it.
âNow, before we do anything else⊠hot food!â she exclaimed before freezing in place. âI uh⊠Anna, you wouldnât happen to have my purse, would you?â
âNo, itâs⊠at⊠home,â Anna stammered, realizing with a start that Elsaâs purse was at home but her phone was not. Her phone was⊠permanently gone, she grimaced. âI uh, I have mine on me.â She dug out a twenty dollar bill, and like a child in a candy store, Elsa dashed for the registers to order a Baconator burger, fries, and a Diet Coke.
They sat down with the food, Anna sneaking a fry or two, and didnât say a word until after Elsa had devoured most of the meal. âI will never again shit on any kind of hot food after this past week. If I never see another plate of⊠whatever the hell they gave me, Iâll be thrilled,â she declared, wiping her mouth with a brown paper napkin.
âYour fast food addiction has only gotten worse, hasnât it?â Anna smirked, dipping a last fry in the tiny paper cups of ketchup on her wifeâs tray.
Elsa wrinkled her nose. âYou have no idea. The fish, Anna. Oh lord, the fish was like⊠it was like fish jello! It was so gross. I canât imagine trying to survive on that.â
âIâm glad you didnât have to for too long, honey. I take it this means itâll be a little while before we go back to Samurai Express?â
âIf⊠if thatâs okay. I know how much you love that place but⊠yeah, it might be a little while for me. We can always get takeout, though - itâs not like sushi can get cold,â she chuckled.
Anna frowned slightly, both at the prospect of not going to her favorite place, and the last time sheâd been there with the other Elsa, the meal that gave away the other Elsaâs identity. âI understand. Iâd probably feel the same too.â She fiddled with the empty paper straw wrapper, twirling it into circles for a few moments before looking up at Elsa. âDo you⊠was my hiding my career the reason we got so distant with each other? Can you forgive me for keeping such a big secret from you?â
âAnna⊠of course. I understand why you had to do it, even if I donât love the idea. Weâre both so dedicated to our work, you know? And you were just trying to keep me safe. I can hardly fault you for that. Maybe before this week I might have thought you were overreacting if youâd told me, but after being kidnapped and imprisoned⊠I need all the safety I can get in my life,â the blonde smiled, finishing the last of the fries.
âIs that,â Anna cleared her throat, âis that why it felt like sometimes, you were more married to the law firm than you were to me?â she asked without malice or anger, just a lingering sadness in her voice as she twisted the paper wrapper into tighter and tighter circles.
âIâŠâ she started defensively before taking a breath, the ghost of the sackcloth dress itching her skin. âI guess I have been a little obsessed with making senior partner, havenât I?â She received a mute nod in response. âItâs not- I mean, oh Anna. I donât know what I mean. Before all this,â she gestured broadly, waving her hands around in the air above her head, âI thought being a senior partner was the most important thing in the world.â
Anna waited to see if sheâd continue before prompting her. âAnd now?â
âNow after spending a week in hell, in a literal dungeon with shitty food being thrown at me and absolutely no hope of escape, being afraid that Iâd be killed or just be allowed to starve to death⊠being a law firm partner didnât do me a damned bit of good. It didnât reassure me. It didnât comfort me. It sure as hell didnât get me out of there. I was powerless, and I hated it.â She turned her hands over, regarding the scabbed cuts and mottled purples on her wrists. âThe only thing I really thought of this whole week was⊠well, was you.â She reached up and cupped Annaâs cheek, brushing the pad of her thumb over Annaâs cheekbone.
Tears welled in Annaâs eyes as her throat closed. âElsa, thatâs- you donât know how long Iâve waited to hear you say something like that. I- I thought we were done, you know? I thought that⊠I mean, I wasnât sure how to bring it up with you but we needed something. We needed a fresh start somehow.â Her phone beeped again and she muted it as fast as she could to avoid shattering the moment. âThereâs⊠thereâs something else I have to tell you, too. Itâs not as big a secret butâŠâ She ignored her text messages and opened up her photo app, swiping to the pictures sheâd taken in Boston Garden with the other Elsa.
âOh wow, she really does look like me! She looks like a 23 year old me,â Elsa sighed wistfully, staring at the young woman in the photo. The two of them - the other Elsa and this worldâs Anna - were leaning against each other, all smiles, with a pair of geese behind them caught in mid-honk. âLike⊠she is me, isnât she? Just like the Anna from where I was - she was really you, a version of you somehow.â
âShe⊠she was, yes. In all the ways that mattered.â
âSo⊠what was the secret you wanted to tell me?â Elsa asked, tilting her head.
Anna closed her eyes and exhaled, shaking slightly, chanting no more secrets in her head as she did. She swiped her thumb to the left, to the last photo in that series. Her and the other Elsa, kissing each other.
âOh,â Elsa said softly, staring at the photo without blinking, her eyes wide. âYou- she- oh. Oh wow. I⊠I donât know how to feel about this, Anna. Thatâs⊠youâre really, really kissing her. Like⊠I mean⊠what happened when you were with her? Did something happen?â
Annaâs face flushed crimson as she tried to work her jaw to speak, instead only imitating a goldfish.
Elsa coughed quietly. âItâs like that, huh?â She turned away for a moment, Annaâs reactions telling the whole story. As long as theyâd been together, she could read Annaâs body language like a textbook; her time in law had taught her how to read body language in general, and Anna was practically an open book. Elsa saw nervousness in Annaâs twitching fingers, guilt and remorse in how tightly pressed her palms were together, and⊠shame? in how sheâd squeezed her legs together. Combined with the barest hint of a bruise just on the collar line of Annaâs t-shirt, Elsa had a very clear idea of what had likely transpired.
âIâm so sorry, Elsa. I⊠I didnât mean to. I didnât mean to do that to you.â Guilt sat on Annaâs shoulders like a sandbag, slumping her over the small table.
âI- I understand in a way, Anna. I mean, look at her,â she gestured to the photo, the slightest tremor in her finger. âThat⊠that IS me. Not someone who looks a lot like me or someone who could be mistaken for me. Thatâs⊠me, me from a decade ago,â she said as one side of her mouth turned up in a small smirk. âAnd we remember just how⊠passionate you were back then for that version of me. And as weird as it sounds, if you were going to be unfaithful with someone⊠I guess the least bad someone would be another version of me, because it means you still love me after all.â
Anna exhaled. âI⊠still, Elsa, it was a stupid and rash thing to do, and I regret it. But yes, god yes, I still love you. I love you so much, all the versions of you, even those from another universe or the past or whatever. Iâm so sorry. I didnât mean⊠I didnât mean to break your trust.â
Elsa rubbed Annaâs cheek again, a soft smile on her lips. âYou⊠you didnât know if I was ever coming back, the same as I didnât know if I was ever going to make it out of that prison alive. I had nightmares of dying in there, in the past or wherever I was, and someone eventually finding my bleached, decrepit bones, chained to the floor. So⊠I can live with you being with another version of me.â
âSo,â Anna ducked her head sheepishly, âweâre okay?â
âWe are. We are more than okay, Anna, because I realize that youâre the only thing that really matters. Youâre the only thing that has ever really mattered, even if I lost sight of that for a while. I promise you I will never do that to you again.â
âAnd I promise to be forever faithful to, uh, this version of you only from now on,â Anna stumbled over her words. âI⊠I want to make this work if you do, Elsa.â
âI do.â Elsa reached out and pulled Anna into a crushing hug, her hand on the back of her wifeâs head as she tried to squeeze any distance between them out. After a few moments, she laughed at a thought that had bubbled up in the back of her mind.
âWhat?â Anna laughed, pulling away to look at Elsaâs face.
âSo⊠did you enjoy getting to feel up 23-year old me again? How was it?â she snickered, jabbing Anna in the ribs lightly with her elbow. âDid you do that thing you used to where-â
âElsa!â
2027
âHey, Killer Frost!â
Elsa looked up from her desk to see the newest junior partner at the firm approaching, two cups of coffee in hand. âMaggie, I told you that you donât have to bring me coffee any more, definitely not after making partner! Also, please, PLEASE stop using that nickname for me?â
The Chinese woman smirked. âI know, boss. Old habits, you know? Besides, I wouldnât call you Killer Frost if you werenât such a cold-blooded killer in the courtroom, you know. Anyway, black with two sugars for you,â she said, placing the cardboard-ringed cup on the desk. She pulled one of the gold-printed coasters off the stack on the corner of Elsaâs desk, the Klein, Gabler, and Beck logo tastefully centered on the cork and leather. After putting down Elsaâs coffee, she sat down with her own in the chair across from her. âAny new developments?â
Elsa brushed her hair back behind her ear. âNot really, just another class action lawsuit,â she murmured, shuffling the papers around.
Maggie craned her neck to look at the top of the pile. âWhich case is this one?â
âThis is the Baltu case. I havenât assigned a team for it yet, but thereâs a good chance Iâll have you handle it. Youâve got the background for it.â
âWhatâs the situation?â
âReparations. The plaintiff is Yelena Baltu, leader of a Sami tribe in northern Norway. Sheâs representing the entire tribe for an environmental lawsuit against our old friends Weselton Corporation.â
Maggie practically spit her coffee in disgust. âThose assholes again. Is there anything they donât immediately ruin? Especially after the disaster around the Royal sinking.â She thought back to the last class action lawsuit the firm had prosecuted against Weselton; one of their larger shipping vessels collided with the KNM Royal, a Norwegian patrol boat, and caused an environmental disaster just north of Arendal.
âYeah, theyâre continuing their fine tradition of destroying everything theyâre involved in. This time, they were apparently trying to find a trade route through whatâs left of the polar ice and beached one of their coal ships on the shoreline, dumping close to a million tons of raw coal, plus about 7.5 million liters of marine fuel, fouling the whole areaâs fishing.â Sheâd already written up what theyâd be aiming for in the settlement - assisted relocation of the village and a living stipend for every villager for 25 years to support them because of the loss of their livelihoods.
âWell, Iâm ready whenever you are to take it on. I canât wait to take that little weasel to trial on my own this time instead of second chairing,â Maggie grinned toothily. âThat way you can spend some more time with your family, too.â She gestured with her head towards the pictures on Elsaâs desk.
Elsa looked down, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth, as she looked first at the picture of her and Anna dressed in aloha shirts on a beach. Shortly after her return, Elsa had found herself with almost three weeks of vacation thanks to her royal counterpartâs winning of the SITC settlement, so she and Anna had taken a trip to the islands for a proper honeymoon that theyâd deferred ever since getting married.
She glanced at the picture next to it, and her hint of a smile became as broad and as bright as the sun coming out from behind a cloud. Her and Anna holding their three year old daughter Rita after the adoption was finalized. Rita, short for her birth name Margarita, was clutching a little American flag on a wooden stick in one hand and a Colombian flag in the other, grinning from ear to ear. Theyâd traveled to Bogota for the adoption; Elsa had been able to spare a week, but thanks to Annaâs agency life, she was able to be stationed temporarily for four weeks to finish the adoption process. All that had been two years ago; Rita was now a precocious five year old that kept both women on their toes.
âSpeaking of which,â she said as her phone chimed, âlooks like the little rascal is all settled in at daycare.â Anna had messaged her with the latest short video clip of Rita after dropping her off. âI certainly wouldnât mind some more home time.â
Maggie laughed. âYouâre a Senior Partner with your name literally on the wall. You can do whatever you want, boss. You own a third of this place.â Her own star had risen with Elsaâs; after the SITC settlement, Elsa had come back almost as if she were a different person. She spent more time with her wife, but when she was in the office, she was twice as productive and effective as any other partner. Though she never explained it, Elsa had also started taking on a pro bono case per month, always for women who had been wrongfully incarcerated.
Before long, Maggie had started getting case after case, smaller work, just because Elsa was carrying such a large, profitable client load. With their shared victories in the courtroom, Maggie had made junior partner in half the time it usually took.
A few hours later, Elsa looked up to see her wife and daughter walking towards her office. She looked up at the clock and grinned; it was time for one of their family lunch dates. She and Anna worked close enough together that they could pull Rita out of daycare for lunch almost every day.
âMama!â Rita came barreling towards her, the yellow sundress a blur as she crashed into Elsaâs thighs.
âHey baby girl, ready to get some lunch?â
âWendyâs!â
Elsa raised an eyebrow at Anna. âI didnât have anything to do with her choice this time, baby! I was going to suggest Citrus & Salt because of their lunch margaritas, but she had other ideas in mind,â her wife said, drooping her shoulders at the idea of another Wendyâs kidâs meal. The only minor downside to their renewed relationship and their baby was a terrifying amount of fast food lunches during the week.
Elsa smiled. âOkay, Wendyâs today, but you have to get the apples with your meal.â She picked up the little girl and twirled her in the air for a brief moment before putting her down and grabbing her jacket from the chair. She clasped Annaâs warm, rough hand in one hand and Ritaâs tiny hand in the other, and they made their way out of the office. As they rode down the glass elevator (a great source of delight for Rita), Elsa leaned against Anna to whisper in her ear. âWe can get takeout jumbo margaritas from Tasca tonight, babe,â she grinned.
âYeah?â
âYeah,â she said with a nod and a knowing look. Anna and tequila always made for entertaining evenings in so many ways. As the elevator opened, Elsa lightly squeezed Annaâs butt, making her yelp and jump a little. Both Elsa and Rita giggled at her reaction.
âStinker. Youâre going to pay for that tonight after margaritas,â Anna deadpanned.
Elsa leaned over to peck her on the lips, then grabbed both girlsâ hands and practically skipped through the lobby of the building. âI certainly hope so. Now come on, we have some burgers to go eat, my loves.â
Authorâs Notes
Thus concludes the story of future Elsa and future Anna. They lived happily ever after, their marriage once again on solid ground.
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Chapter 22: Epilogue 2: Arendelle, The City of Secrets
Summary:
Annelisa gaped at the pantheon of spirits before them. âHow⊠how is this possible?
Chapter Text
Epilogue 2: Arendelle, The City of Secrets
2022, Arendelle
Queen Elsanna, daughter of Iduna II, granddaughter of Rita, great-granddaughter of Elsa and Anna, closed the door to her royal chambers as the last hints of the Arendelle national anthem wafted through the castle corridors. She looked at the high, vaulted ceilings and the paintings on the walls of her predecessors with admiration and nervousness as the newest monarch. She had a special fondness in her heart for her great-grandmother, Elsa, whose powers and adventures had secured the future of Arendelle 177 years ago.
After ensuring the doors were locked, she removed her coronation gown and tiara, laying them carefully on the bed. Jakob and Nora, her attendants, would be by later to preserve the garments for her heirs. She donned a sky blue hoodie and yoga pants, casualwear that would be scandalous in open court, but were her clothes of choice behind closed doors. She briefly looked in the mirror, seeing Elsaâs golden hair but Annaâs teal eyes and freckles staring back at her, a product of advanced genetic manipulation.
Elsanna touched a control by her bed, turning on the TV screen adjacent to the wall of paintings. A friendly voice piped up. âOnline Assistant Facility ready for use. Welcome, Princess Elsanna,â echoed the voice in the room before an image appeared onscreen of a white snowman with a giant carrot nose.
âHello, OLAF,â Elsanna murmured. âTodayâs the day. Initiate Coronation Protocol, please.â
âOne moment while the protocol loads, Princess. I mean, Your Majesty. Sorry about that. Hey, did you know that bonfire comes from the words bone and fire?â
Elsanna sighed. âOLAF, this is perhaps not the most appropriate time for trivia.â
âOh, sorry about that. Itâs just⊠thereâs always so much to learn. For example- oh wait, never mind. Coronation Protocol has been loaded.â
The gold crocus of Arendelle appeared onscreen, and OLAF spoke up despite being displaced. âYour Majesty, Coronation Protocol requires a password and voice authentication. Go ahead when youâre ready.â She smiled, remembering the lessons taught to her by her tutors about the history of Arendelleâs rulers and the sister queens who made this future possible. âAlways punch Hans,â she said, and the screen flashed bright green momentarily.
She gasped as a video began to play, seeing the image of her great-grandmother. âMy heir,â Elsaâs voice soothed, her face kind and strong despite her advanced age, âCongratulations on your coronation and ascension to the throne. My name is Elsa, and I was Queen of Arendelle long before you. Today, as you take the throne and the responsibility for our people, I grant you the secret knowledge that has kept Arendelle strong. On the wall below Queen Annaâs portrait, you will see a stone. Use your powers of frost and ice to open it, and down a flight of stairs will be King Agnarrâs vault. Descend into the vault, and open each of the lockboxes with your powers. The blue box with the snowflake will have everything you need to know about being Queen and then some.â
The image of Elsa, skin still impossibly smooth despite her hair being completely snow white and a woman in her late 70s, smiled as though she could see her heir. âI am certain you have made our kingdom proud already, and I know with this knowledge, you will be a fair and just ruler. Guide our people well, and know that Arendelleâs true power is always rooted in both love and family. May the flag of Arendelle always fly.â
Elsanna turned off the video and pressed her palm against a plain-looking stone in the wall, icy tendrils flowing into gaps around the stone, a magical key. A door silently slid open, and she descended a stone staircase into a vault that Elsaâs father Agnarr had built to hold research about magic. In the centuries since, it had held some of Arendelleâs greatest treasures. Hundreds of tomes sat neatly ordered on shelves in one part of the enormous room, a private library almost none had ever seen.
She made her way to a cobalt blue lockbox and reached into it with her ice magic, unlocking it. A soft hiss escaped the box as it opened, revealing a holographic projection device not unlike the others found around the castle, and several small devices. She tapped the projection device and jumped back, startled. Her recently deceased mother, Iduna, appeared as a nearly life-like hologram. âElsanna, my darling. If youâre watching this, it means I am gone and you are now Queen. I know youâll do right by our people, as I have tried to.â
The projection of her mother began to walk around the room as Elsanna stifled her tears. âToday, as I once had to learn from the passing of my own mother, you will learn the dangerous secret that has made Arendelle what it is. Before you is a piece of technology brought back by Queen Elsa early in her reign, a smartphone from a time and place outside of our own, another world entirely.â
Elsanna gingerly lifted the glass device, archaic by Arendellian standards but just one generation behind what the rest of the world had access to now. Despite its age, it still functioned somehow. Iduna continued.
âThis device was brought back by Queen Elsa in 1845 under mysterious, paranormal circumstances. On it, Queen Elsa had somehow brought back knowledge of the future, of what is close to the present day for you, including a comprehensive encyclopedia of the future.â
Iduna recounted the years after Elsaâs return as scenes from the past flashed before Elsanna. In private, she had snowgie scribes working around the clock to transcribe all the knowledge stored in the phone, launching Arendelle ahead of every nation around it. Medicine, science, technology, literature, and politics were all within the small nationâs reach. The library in the eastern wing of the palace contained shelf after shelf of books, written in Queen Elsaâs hand, about almost every scientific, medical, and mathematical topic stored in the futuristic iPhone, nearly 3,000 volumes.
Initially, to fund much of the development of Arendelle from the knowledge, Crown Princess Anna had traveled to London and purchased as many counterparty risk investments in maritime insurance as possible. With sure knowledge of which ships investors were betting would sink but didnât (she thought it was gross people were betting on innocent lives, so she only bet on survivors), she multiplied Arendelleâs fortunes considerably; in less than six months, sheâd tripled the national treasury. Those proceeds went to investment in Arendelle itself, importing rare materials and building manufacturing capacity to power their advances in science and medicine especially.
As with her powers, Elsa recognized just how dangerous the knowledge was. Early on, the snowgies had scribed a series of articles about time travel and timeline pollution, leading Elsa to declare that Arendelle would have a strict policy of isolationism and neutrality, avoiding other nations except where necessary for trade until they were fully self-sufficient. A year after her return, she discovered a new land far to the north of where Arendelle had been located, a land known only to the indigenous Northuldra people as Ahtohallan.
Elsa launched expedition after expedition to Ahtohallan until she explored its secrets, including control over the elements themselves and the source of her magic. In cooperation with the Northuldra tribal nation, who sheâd befriended along the way, over a decade they moved the entire city-state of Arendelle to Ahtohallanâs land mass. Most of Arendelleâs citizens and half the Northuldra chose to go with the Queen to the land in the far north; a minority stayed behind and eventually ceded the nation to Norway, becoming the principality of Arendal.
With her scholarsâ knowledge, they were able to construct advanced technologies like greenhouses and hydroponic gardening, solar desalination, and other sustainable technologies that allowed Arendelle to thrive despite being located on a giant glacier.
With her powers over the elements and the happiness of her people assured, Elsa worked with the spirits to lift the enchantment over the forest surrounding the remaining Northuldra, and instead cast a similar enchantment over Arendelle itself, hiding it away from the world as the years passed by. Knowing that Ahtohallan would someday likely be destroyed by climate change, she made a bargain with the spirits to pass her magic down to her heirs, in exchange for them using their power to keep the sacred halls frozen and intact in the mists.
Once hidden from the world and secured from all manner of misfortunes, Elsa felt comfortable enough to elevate Anna to Queen alongside her and, in a break from tradition but relatively little scandal thanks to the prosperity of the small nation, married her as well. The spirits gave them an additional, unanticipated gift: when invoked, Elsa and any of her descendants could bear children unassisted, ensuring the royal line had heirs, though by the end of Queen Ritaâs reign, such techniques were unnecessary thanks to Arendelleâs genomics program. Still, the spirits blessed each heir to the line with their powers as long as they held true to the pact made by Elsa.
Now, more than 177 years after Elsaâs return from the future, Arendelle was one of the most advanced civilizations on the planet, second only to Wakanda. The small nation had survived world wars, pandemics, and disasters unscathed, hidden away in the mists of far northern Norway. Its scholars had taken the knowledge brought back by Elsa and advanced it far beyond what the rest of the world had. Their first smartphones were built in 1900; their first quantum computers built in 1945. Their civilization advanced quickly enough that the phone, which normally would have stopped functioning after a few years, was easily sustained and repaired over the decades to keep it functioning as an artifact. As prophesied by Elsaâs trip to the alternate timeline, by hiding away Arendelle from the rest of the world, no one had ever heard of it and it had vanished from the earth.
Elsanna had always known magic was part of what made Arendelleâs rulers special; her own powers had awakened when she was 5 years old; her younger sisterâs powers appeared at roughly the same age, two years later. The magical barrier that insulated the kingdom also gave her powers over earth, water, fire, and wind. But the rest of the story was largely unknown to the citizens of the tiny kingdom. All theyâd known was that the outside world was a dangerous place, filled with people who would love nothing more than to plunder Arendelleâs secrets and ravage the kingdom.
Iduna gave some final instructions to her daughter, then smiled sadly at her. âI am sorry Iâm not there for you, but I know youâll lead Arendelle better than almost anyone, including myself. Please take care of your little sister for me, and Iâll see youâŠâ her smile brightened, âIâll see you when I see you, my baby girl.â
Elsanna tapped the hologram projector off after wiping a tear from her cheek. The only relations the tiny nation had were with the Northuldra and a few other Sami tribes nearby. Elsaâs legacy was secure; as Elsanna looked out the balcony window of the royal palace, she could see the flag of Arendelle snapping crisply in the wind, made golden by the late afternoon sun and framed by the giant, rocky peaks of Ahtohallan.
A knock at the door startled her out of her reverie. She looked at the clock projection on her desk; Jakob and Nora were probably stopping by. Sheâd lost track of the time listening to the history of Arendelle and hours had flown by. As she gestured for the omnipresent AI to open the door, a blurry mass fell into her room.
âSis!â exclaimed the prone form face down on her floor, her black and green bunad pooling around her.
Elsanna facepalmed. Her younger sister had apparently just been ready to knock again and timed it exactly with the door opening up.
âAnnelisa, you really do need to be more careful. Come on,â she laughed, holding her hand out. The brown-haired younger sister took the proffered hand and staggered to her feet, apparently still having trouble navigating the palace in the high heels sheâd worn for the coronation ceremony.
âItâs not my fault we have to wear these ridiculous outfits for like, one time in our entire lives,â Annelisa muttered, still trying to find her balance and holding tight to her sisterâs hand.
âYou know you can take the shoes off now, right?â
A pair of black heels flew across the bedroom at record speed as Annelisa breathed a sigh of relief. After her shoes came the bobby pins holding her hair in place, luxurious walnut-colored waves unfurling. âOkay, thatâs the end of that. So⊠what happened?â she asked, hesitant.
âWhat happened with what?â
She elbowed her older sister as she finally let go of her hand. âYou know! The coronation ceremony, the private one! Did⊠I miss her so much, sis.â
âI do too, Annie. As for what she said, well⊠Mother told me the real story of how Arendelle came to be and why we hide ourselves away in the mists here.â
Annelisa flopped gracelessly onto the giant bed with her arms splayed wide, rumpling the perfectly laid out duvet. Her tutors would be appalled at her lack of comportment, especially for someone 19 years old, but such lessons hadnât ever really stuck with her. âAnd?â
Elsanna sighed. âAnd thereâs apparently one last thing to do before my coronation is considered complete. I have to go to the Forbidden Shore.â
âElsie⊠are you sure?â her sister asked nervously, propping herself up on her elbows. âNo oneâs allowed to go there. Itâs been the law since forever.â
âIt is for all the other citizens of Arendelle, but not us. Mother said as part of the ceremony, I have to go there at least once. She told me exactly what to do. In fact, I should probably go and get it out of the way before the day is over, so that itâs all official and such,â the queen sighed, pulling a pair of sneakers out from under the bed.
Annelisa sprung up from the bed and flung open Elsannaâs wardrobe, pulling out some green running shorts and a black tank top. âIs⊠is it okay if I go with you?â she asked as she immodestly wriggled out of her own confining coronation dress, leaving it in a puddle of fabric on the floor.
Elsanna laughed as she turned to give her sister some privacy. âI wasnât going to give you a choice. Mother insisted you had to come along.â
A scant fifteen minutes later, the sisters exited the side door of the castle and began the long walk down from the plateau that Arendelle was built on. The giant glacier easily supported the modest city atop it; only heirs to the throne were permitted to leave the boundaries of the city for the glacierâs shoreline, hundreds of feet below. The sisters marveled at the buildings they passed by on the way to the edge of the glacier; hydroponic and aeroponic greenhouses grew food for the city year-round, while fields of solar and wind generators converted natureâs bounty into the power they needed.
As they descended the icy staircase cut into the side of the glacier, tendrils of fog and mist wrapped around them. Only those with the magical powers gifted to them by the spirits could pass through it, and the fog easily yielded to the two of them.
Finally, they reached the shoreline - the Forbidden Shore - and found an entrance to the interior of the glacier. âMama said from here on in, we have to go barefootâ, Elsanna murmured, taking off her shoes and leaving them on the icy steps. Annelisa followed suit, grinning. The cold had never bothered either of them, a trait shared with their late mother.
Elsanna grabbed her sisterâs hand as they walked through what appeared to be a foyer and a series of ice tunnels. Gentle lights seemed to sparkle in the ice itself, lighting the passages. They slid down the icy tunnels on bare feet as though ice skating until they reached a chasm. In concert, both sisters raised their hands and a bridge made of ice materialized across the gap. With shared giggles, they crossed over it, into a hall filled with ice columns, then through a triangular doorway into a cavernous, dark room.
âWhat do you suppose this place is, Elsie?â the brown-haired girl asked, staring in wonder at the midnight blue hues of the room, her voice echoing off unseen walls.
âI⊠I donât know. Iâve never seen or heard of anything like this before.â She gathered her sisterâs hand in her own and they walked further into the room. On the icy floor, they could barely make out what looked like an elaborate diamond pattern, the ice slightly different hues.
Annelisa stepped forward gingerly, barely putting her toes on the center of the diamond pattern when the floor roared to life. A silvery white diamond glowed brightly, expanding into what looked like a snowflake. Annelisa grabbed her sister and held tightly to her as a fountain of light suffused them, then rocketed to the ceiling. Shimmering snow cascaded down the walls, revealing icy facets as though they were standing inside a diamond.
Elsanna gasped as she looked up into one of the large facets. âMother!â
âHello, my darlings. I am sorry I had to go, but destiny called.â
âIs it really you, Mama?â Annelisa choked out, squeezing her sister tighter in her arms as she stared at the image of their recently-departed mother.
âIt is. My spirit remains here with all of the spirits of our forebears. This⊠this is the source of our magic: our people, our family, here to guide you. The both of you. And thereâs someone Iâd like you to meet,â their mother smiled.
In a separate facet, Rita, daughter of Elsa and Anna, mother of Iduna II, shimmered into view, smiling down at the girls. âHello, granddaughters. Though I never got a chance to meet you in life, I am happy to see you now,â the woman smiled before turning to face another large facet and a familiar face. âAllow me to introduce you to-â
âQueen Elsa!â Elsanna shouted with glee, extending her arms towards the image. âIâve⊠Iâve always wondered what it would be like to meet you!â
Elsa nodded and smiled at the sisters as Annaâs face came into view. âLook, sis. They look so much like us.â
âThey do, donât they? They also look like Mother,â Anna remarked from inside the glass-like ice as she hugged Elsa at the waist.
Annelisa gaped at the pantheon of spirits before them. âHow⊠how is this possible?â
From behind them, a soft tune floated through the air, a few musical notes hummed at first before the words filled in. Elsanna recognized the song immediately and began to sing along.
âWhere the North wind meets the sea, Thereâs a river full of memory. Sleep, my darling, safe and sound, For in this river, all is found.â
As she finished the last bars of the song, a final face appeared in the ice. âIâm so glad you remembered,â Iduna the Elder murmured, then turned to the other womenâs spirits. âAnd Iâm so glad you each taught our heritage and passed it down from one generation to the next.â
Elsanna nodded. âWithout it, without the Northuldra, we never would have known about Ahtohallan - and Arendelle might have been lost. The world outside⊠itâs a frightening place. Thankfully Queen Elsa did what she did to keep both it and Arendelle safe.â
âNow you know why Ahtohallan is so important, my children,â Iduna the Younger said. âIt is where we, as Fifth Spirits, go after our mortal lives. This river of memories is the source of all our magic, all our power. When Elsa rediscovered it, when she awakened it as you have today, she reconnected our line with our ancestors. It is why every Queen of Arendelle must come here after coronation.â
Snow began to fly through the air as the wind picked up, and for a brief moment neither sister could see anything. When the blizzard faded away, the five elders walked among them as figures in snow, animated. âHere, in this sacred space, you may come to us at any time, Elsanna - and you as well, Annelisa - to ask for our guidance. While we cannot interfere with the outside world or leave these halls, we can offer our wisdom and our love to you and to Arendelle,â Elsa said as her snowy visage held Annaâs hand.
Anna spoke up. âAnd when it is time, your time, youâll join us as well. Hey Elsa⊠uh, do they know theyâre Fifth Spirits too? I mean, the Queen of Arendelle always has been since you, but I donât know if-â
Elsanna laughed. âI know. We know. Mama told us in her last holographic video.â
âIn her what?â Anna scratched her head.
Annelisa giggled and held up her arm, revealing a sleek cobalt gauntlet on her wrist. With a wave of her fingers over it, a small light glimmered, and then a shimmering image projected from it of Iduna the Younger.
Anna gasped. âOh my god, thatâs amazing! Elsa, look at that! They have better magic than you did!â
Elsaâs image, made of snow though it was, unmistakably pinched the bridge of her nose and shook her head, much to the sistersâ amusement. âAnna, thatâs not magic. Thatâs what technology has evolved to in Arendelle after I brought back that smartphone.â She turned to look at her great grand-daughter. âArendelle⊠is it still safe? Itâs still strong?â
Elsanna smiled and reached out, putting a hand on the snowy imageâs shoulder. To her surprise, it was solid, almost like the former Queen was really there in the room with her. âIt is, Queen Elsa. The technology you brought back, each of us has improved on. Weâre now probably one of the most advanced civilizations in the world. And as youâd asked, the flag still flies in the city center.â
The image of Elsa conjured a bench and sat down on it. âIt fills me with relief that nothing bad has happened to our little nation, after all I read about the misfortunes of the future world in our books. Well, the responsibility of caring for Arendelle falls on you and your sister now, but I can already tell Arendelleâs future is in good hands.â
âThank you, Queen Elsa-â
âJust Elsa, please!â
âThank you, Elsa. Well, Annelisa and I should probably be heading back. But weâll come to visit and learn more, as much as we can. I canât wait to get to know all of you better,â Elsanna bowed and headed for the door before noticing Annelisa wasnât behind her.
âGo on ahead without me, sis. I just need to ask one more question of the spirits before Iâm done. I wonât be long,â she said, waving as her older sister left the great cavern.
Once out of earshot, the image of Elsa turned to the younger sister as the other women looked on, softly smiling. âWhat was it you wanted to ask us, Annelisa?â
At the prompt, Annelisaâs cheeks pinked and she folded her arms across her chest, staring down at your feet. âI⊠I wanted to know, and this isnât something I can ask anyone else, but Iâve been thinking about it for years, andâŠâ
Elsa turned to Anna. âShe rambles like you.â
Anna shushed her sister. âIâm sorry, please go on, Annelisa.â
âHow⊠ugh, I donât know how to say this⊠umm⊠how do you know if youâre in love with your sister?â
Authorâs Notes
This chapter answers all the questions about what happened with Elsaâs phone and how their universe, the canon divergent universe turned out.
Fun fact: Wikipedia shows just how many books it would occupy if it were printed out. As of September 2021, itâs 2,965 volumes printed, text only - thatâs the size of the Arendelle library in this fic, though I figure the snowgies only wrote about half of it down as thereâs a lot of less important stuff in Wikipedia.
This is it, folks! This is the official end of Switching Places. The last epilogue will be the incomplete second act that I scrapped, mainly because it detracted from the Elsa/Anna relationship and storyline.
Join The Party
Enjoyed this story? Want to meet fellow readers and discuss? Join the Elsanna Shenanigans community on Discord at discord.gg/TU9NpnH (copy and paste that URL for AO3 friends, go to discord dot gg slash TU9NpnH for FFN friends).
As always, please review, kudos, comment, like, follow, all that good stuff. I appreciate it.
Chapter 23: The Road Untraveled
Summary:
This last epilogue is an unfinished set of chapters that was originally part of Switching Places, but I decided it was too muddled. This was, to be clear, the original story up to chapter 22. What's in the published version is what I wrote after tossing away these extra chapters.
Chapter Text
Epilogue 3: The Road Untraveled
Authorâs Prologue
2021, my armchair
This last epilogue is an unfinished set of chapters that was originally part of Switching Places, but I decided it was too muddled. This was, to be clear, the original story up to chapter 22. Whatâs in the published version is what I wrote after tossing away these extra chapters.
Why? Fundamentally, Switching Places is about Elsanna, about the relationship between Elsa and Anna - related and unrelated. What happened in this âdirectorâs cutâ edition is that I mistakenly felt like I needed an extra plot to provide some drama after Elsaâs return to her correct timeline and find a way to logically have Anna fall in love with Elsa.
But, it turns out, I didnât. Remember that Switching Places was conceptually borrowed from an Agents of SHIELD fic called Another Life, by AOS_Skimmons. In that fic, Skye gets bumped into an alternate universe in which sheâs married to Jemma Simmons, and after falling in love with her there, ends up back in her original timeline and has to persuade Jemma to fall in love with her again. Thatâs the barebones concept that I spun into Switching Places (and amusingly, Another Life is in its entirety shorter than this one epilogue alone, at 13K).
So when I got to around chapter 22 of Switching Places, I realized that the entire extra subplot was wholly unnecessary. The story just had to be about Elsa - who had fallen in love with Future!Anna - and canon Anna falling for each other. Thatâs it. I ended up setting aside these chapters, but this is a behind the scenes look at where the story might have gone, plus some insight into my writing process. They havenât been proofread; youâll hear more about that in some of the authorâs notes, but all except the last chapter are fundamentally complete as a first draft.
We begin at the end of Chapter 16. That ends in the âofficialâ story with Elsa and Anna returning to the palace. This following part got deleted.
Directorâs Cut, Chapter 16: Return Points
He woke up in almost the same place heâd disappeared from, a week later.
The perfect week. He was married to her. He was loved by her. He had it all.
And then it was ripped away from him. His dreams, shattered. His love, torn asunder.
Now, staring at the empty room around him, he curled his fingers into so tight a fist that his nails drew blood from his palm, and he screamed into the silent void that was his broken heart.
I want to go back, he growled, pounding a fist against the wall. Iâll do anything to get back what Iâve lost! Take me back!
He hit the wall harder. TAKE ME BACK!
His knuckles bled. TAKE ME BACK!
Directorâs Cut, Chapter 17: All is Lost
Slightly More Than One Week Ago
Thereâs an expression, the days are long but the years are short. Sometimes, if weâre very lucky, the days are long because theyâre filled with the kind of happiness and fulfillment we desire most in life. The embrace of a loved one. The unconditional companionship of a pet. The eager laughter of a child.
For the first time in forever, he had these and more. As he awoke, the last thing he remembered from the previous night was standing outside the stables, seeing a vivid magenta ribbon in the Northern Lights that looked almost like a thunderstorm, and a purple bolt of lightning stretching towards him like the finger of a deity.
He awoke next to her, and momentarily confused. In his mind, he remembered two lives; the life of the person heâd been the night before, and the life of the person heâd woken into. Memories conflicted, but as he sorted out his thoughts, a smile broke upon his face and grew wider by the moment.
This was a house, a home - his home - that heâd longed for since he was a young boy. Abandoned - no, orphaned, as a young child, heâd always dreamed of that feeling of completeness, as though his heart, once feeling like a piece was missing, was finally whole.
She was there, beside him, gently stroking soft fingers across his broad chest. At first he thought it was just a dream, but the morning light didnât break the spell - and neither did the giant dog that came in and jumped on the bed.
Anna shouted, âSven, get off the bed! You know youâre not allowed on it!â She desperately tried to suppress her giggling at the large dogâs antics, gently swatting the large brown Norsk elghund with a pillow. Kristoff stared in wonder at Anna before noticing the ring on her third finger⊠and a matching one on his.
Once Sven sulked off the bed and curled up at the foot, Anna turned over to lay an arm across his chest. âHey, big guy,â she cooed. âWe better get up soon, gotta get Olaf ready for school.â She gave him a quick peck on the lips before hopping out of bed and scrambling to get dressed, while he lay there, stunned. He basked in the warmth of the bed, the softness, the lingering scent⊠every part, every bit her.
Anna.
The woman he loved from the moment he met her in Oakenâs lodge, but knew he could never have, never be with. Royalty didnât mingle with orphaned commoners.
And yet⊠here he was, in his home, with her as his wife, and everything was exactly as it should be. He looked around, and it was exactly as heâd dreamed over the years, exactly as he remembered from this life he woke into. The queen size bed, stuffed with wool and lanolin, the rough-hewn wooden furniture made by his own hands. Colorful patterns adorned the walls, painted onto the timber planks, painted by his wife in the shape of snowflakes. A cuckoo clock hung on the wall, slowly ticking away the minutes until he had to rise.
It felt so real, so perfect.
âPapa, can you play with me?â Olaf, his blond-haired nine year old asked, holding out a ball and stick. Kristoff pulled on his vest and boots, then opened the door and stepped outside. He breathed deeply; the crisp, cool morning air greeted him as he looked out over the Arendelle fjord. In the distance, he could see the Royal Palace, far in the valley below; verdant hills and trees surrounded the small cluster of houses near him. âSure, just for a few minutes until Mama has breakfast ready, okay?â
Olaf nodded and tossed the ball to his father, and they played a few minutesâ worth of slĂ„ball, pretending that they were famous athletes, running from the inside team to the outside team. Kristoff laughed at Olafâs attempt to hit the wooden ball, and cheered for him on the rare occasions he was able to hit it with the stick. Each time, the boyâs eyes lit up like heâd just been given a Christmas toy.
More memories flooded his mind of this lifetime. Olaf being born, the midwife holding the baby up for Kristoff to hold. The tiny boyâs first steps across the woven wool rug that their neighbor had knitted as a baby gift. Olaf trying to ride the dog as a toddler.
Anna leaned out the front window, breaking his reverie with a shout, âBoys! Time for breakfast!â The scent of coffee and toast wafted from the window, and both ran inside. On the small wooden table, they each shared toast, smoked salmon, and scrambled eggs. Olaf devoured his so rapidly, Kristoff barely had a chance to take a bite before the boy was done. He put Olafâs jacket on him and pointed the boy out the door. A few moments later, Olaf looked back and waved at his parents, as he walked the dirt road to the town center and the borgerskoler, or trade school.
Anna wrapped an arm around Kristoffâs waist as they stood in the door watching Olaf walk away. âHeâs growing up so fast, isnât he?â she sighed, leaning her head against his shoulder.
Kristoff swallowed. âHe is for sure.â Pausing a few moments to look out over the fjord. âThe Palace looks⊠sparkly this morning, doesnât it?â At the mention of the Palace, he felt Anna stiffen against him.
âI⊠you know I donât like to think about it, Kristoff,â she muttered, turning to head back inside and start cleaning up the breakfast dishes with a scowl.
âI was just saying⊠Iâm sorry, I know that itâs a sensitive topic. Sorry, honey.â A moment of confusion passed over his mind, conflicting memories dueling with each other.
âSheâs just⊠she never should have put me in that position, you know?â Anna huffed, wiping down the plates with a wet rag. âShe never should have made me choose between you and her. If she- if sheâd just kept things the way they were, none of this ever would have happened. What was so wrong with the way it was? We were happy, all of us.â
Kristoff walked over to the sink and rubbed his hands across his wifeâs tense shoulders, easing his thumbs into the muscle tension that had appeared at the mention of Annaâs estranged sister⊠the Queen. âShe⊠she wasnât happy, Anna. Iâm not saying what she did was right, disowning you and forcing you out of the Palace, but⊠you know she loved you. Loves you, probably still,â he offered kindly.
âYeah, well, she shouldnât have loved me⊠that way. Itâs not right.â Anna looked out the window over the kitchen counter, tears welling up in her eyes. âI waited thirteen years for her, and she⊠anyway, it doesnât matter. Weâre happy, Olaf is happy, and everythingâs all right. Can you draw another bucket of water from the well, please?â
Kristoff sighed and grabbed the large wooden pails and yoke, heading for the well down the hill. He knew Anna still loved her sister, even after the catastrophic fight theyâd had. When he proposed to her, he went to Elsa to ask her blessing, and sheâd furiously thrown him out of the Palace entirely, without a word of explanation. Anna had found him outside the closed gates, asked what happened, and confronted her sister⊠who had confessed she was in love with Anna.
Anna, being the feistypants redhead that she was, had told her sister that loving her like that was unnatural and delivered a fiery ultimatum: either she blessed Kristoffâs proposal, or Anna would leave.
She never expected her sister to choose the latter.
With that choice came consequences neither of them foresaw. Elsa disowned her sister, stripping her of title and patronage, and then in a shock to both of them, expelled her from the palace entirely.
He cranked the well handle, drawing up another bucket of water and pouring it into his larger carrying buckets as he reminisced. After Annaâs expulsion, she was effectively just another Arendelle common citizen like he was. They married in a chapel on the outskirts of the city with Pabbie officiating; when the local townsfolk got wind of her situation, theyâd pitched in to help the newlyweds get a plot of land up in the hills. Anna had always been the peopleâs favorite royal, after all - she was kind and open, and hadnât frozen the entire countryside solid for days.
Kristoff shook his head as he put the buckets on the yoke. What was real? This life, he remembered everything, but he also remembered an Arendelle in which Anna and Elsa remained the closest of sisters. They hadnât had the fight, Anna still lived in the Palace, and he⊠he lived in the stables with a reindeer. He turned to his side to see the elghund at his side. Sven. Both his reindeer and his dog were named Sven.
âWell Kristoff, whoâs to say which is the dream and which is real?â he mouthed, miming the words from the dog as he leaned down to scratch behind its ears.
âYeah, I guess youâre right, Sven. Iâm here, this is where I am, and maybe⊠I donât know, maybe Iâm just going crazy. But I distinctly remember you being a reindeer, too,â he chuckled as he hoisted the yoke over his broad shoulders, the water in the covered buckets sloshing around. âWe better get back with this, huh?â
He honestly didnât know how long it had been since being whisked away from the stables. The conflicting memories made it all such a blur; it could have been a day, a week, or a lifetime ago. But as he looked out the bedroom window that evening, his arm around Annaâs sleeping form, his heart sank.
There, in the distant sky, was an aurora with a storm inside it. He recognized it immediately; it was just like the one that had snatched him away from the other reality.
No, he thought. I donât want to go there, go back there. Thereâs nothing for me there. Sheâs⊠sheâs not mine there. Sorrow and anger wrestled with each other in his heart, tightening his chest and stealing his breath as though Sven were sitting on him. There⊠sheâs not mine. Sheâs Elsaâs. And sheâll never be mine there. Why canât I stay here, with her, with Olaf as a real boy instead of an insane talking snowman?
The fight ended, and anger won. Kristoff fumed at the injustice of finding a life - somehow - that was everything he ever wanted, only to possibly lose it all. I need to go see Pabbie, and quick.
The next morning, Kristoff rode his horse (not Sven, as his conflicted memories prompted him) to the Valley of Living Rock. In both lives, heâd been orphaned and raised by the rock trolls. A sense of nostalgia washed over him as the clan rolled into view like a thunderstorm over a great plain. At the head of the pack, Bulda and Cliff - his adoptive parents - sprang from their rolling rock forms and embraced him.
âWhatâs wrong, Kristoff? Love troubles?â the portly rock troll asked, her vegetation swaying slightly.
Kristoff nodded. âSomething like that. Somethingâs⊠happened to me. Is Pabbie available?â
The largest stone in the pack rolled forward and unfurled itself, rising taller than the rest. âWell, Kristoff. What have you gotten yourself into this time,â the old troll sighed, giving the human a wry smile. âCome, come. Sit down and tell us of your troubles.â
Kristoff recounted his confusion, waking up the previous day in a home that was different than the one heâd left the day before. He described the two sets of memories he had, as though he had lived twice as many lives. And he recalled the aurora with the unusual colors in the sky the previous night.
âYouâre withholding something, Kristoff,â chided Bulda, nudging his shin. âWhat is it? Is something wrong with your wife?â
âI⊠yeah. In this life I have Anna. Weâre married, weâre happy, we have Olaf⊠itâs perfect.â His features darkened as he continued, âIn that other life, I donât. Anna has Elsa, and they love each other. I- Iâm not needed there for Anna to be happy.â
Pabbie stared at Kristoffâs admissions, his own stone brow furrowed. âKristoff⊠there is great danger here,â he murmured, holding up rocky fingers as he felt the magic surrounding the man. âYou are in danger, great and terrible danger. I sense in you a terrible anger lurking, the way a wolf stands at the edge of the woods, always lurking. It is in your heart even now.â
âI need your help, Pabbie. I need to stay here, instead of being sent back to⊠to where I came from. Surely you must know some magic that will help? If I can stay here, then⊠then there wonât be anything except happiness in my heart.â
Pabbie slowly shook his head, casting his eyes towards the morning sky. âWhat has caused this change, these events, is magic beyond my grasp,â he said as he held his hands high, images of the aurora swirling in the air around them. âWhat brought you here is like a doorway into a room with many doors. It is not magic I can control, my grandson.â
Kristoff fell to his knees, his hands on the elder trollâs shoulders. âPlease, please Pabbie. Please help me stay. I⊠I canât be without her, I canât be without her love. I need her love!â Tears began to run down the blond manâs face as a spark of desperation lit in his eyes, his hands shaking the troll.
âI can only tell you to make the most of what you have, while you have it, Kristoff. Love is powerful magic of its own; you know this better than most. Do not waste a moment of time on anger, grandson. Fill the time you have with love, and whatever time you have, it will be enough. Now go, hurry back to her.â
Kristoff pressed his lips together before slowly nodding. âI- Iâll try. Thank you, Pabbie. Iâll see you again soon.â He mounted his horse and headed away from the valley, struggling to quash the anger inside him, anger at the unfairness of the situation. His face burned, in part from the anger and from the midday sun beating down on him.
There must be a way, he kept reciting to himself with each beat of his horseâs hooves back to his home.
The week drew to a close, and the aurora drew closer. Kristoff grew more restless with each passing day, pondering what would happen when the aurora finally reached him. On Friday, six days after his arrival, the aurora was almost overhead when he had a sudden thought: perhaps magic could be used against magic.
He gritted his teeth as the thought hit him while he was eating his lunch, sitting at the table. Thankfully, Anna was out in town getting supplies, else she would have noticed his mood darkening immediately. There was only one magic user he knew of who might have the kind of powerful magic needed to stop the aurora; Pabbie already said it was beyond him.
Kristoff looked out the window and down the valley to Arendelleâs palace. Elsa - the Queen - was so powerful a witch that she once froze the entire land solid, an eternal winter in the middle of July. If she could freeze a nation, could she freeze a magical entity? he wondered.
Sheâs not going to be happy to see you, Kristoff, he mimed Sven saying, the dog rubbing up against his leg.
âI know, buddy. But I have to try, you know?â
An hourâs walk later, he stood in front of the closed palace gates. Ever since Elsa had disowned her sister, the gates had returned to being closed all the time, much to the dismay of the citizens. He approached one of the guards, asking if the Queen would give him an audience. The guard eyed him briefly before shaking his head wordlessly, his halberd shining in the midday light against his forest green uniform.
âPlease, tell her itâs a matter of magical urgency, about the peculiar northern lights!â he urged. At that moment, fortune smiled on Kristoff; Gerda happened to be returning to the palace in a carriage with some supplies and recognized him. The carriage drew to a halt at the gates and Gerda leaned out the window.
âWhat is a matter of magical urgency, Master Kristoff?â the elder chamberlain asked, tilting her head with curiosity.
Kristoff summarized the situation as best as he could, that the magical aurora seen in the night sky posed a threat, and the Queen could possibly use her magic to stop it before it did any harm, pulling someone else out of their life - perhaps even the Queen herself. Gerda nodded in assent as the guards held open the gates, allowing Kristoff to walk inside the courtyard.
âStay here, and I will see if sheâs amenable to seeing you again, Master Kristoff,â she advised, heading inside the palace.
He waited in the courtyard, looking around. In the months that had passed since Annaâs falling out, the palace had fallen into some disrepair. The fountains, once frozen into ice sculptures as the townspeople skated around, were empty of water entirely. Dried leaves floated aimlessly in the corners of the courtyard, and the roofline, once lined with snow and ice crystals that sparkled brilliantly in the sun, were drab and dull. He looked up at the palaceâs facade and saw the giant bell used to ring in the holiday season still in its bellframe, the rope frayed at the end.
Though no sound preceded her arrival, the temperature heralded it. Kristoff shivered as the palace doors opened fully and a gust of bitter wind slapped him in the face. Hoping to make a good impression, he bent a knee as she stepped out, only to hear her sharp intake of breath.
âYou,â she hissed at him, pointing a finger towards him, âhow dare you set foot in the palace at all! Youâre lucky I didnât have you exiled entirely for what you did.â
âElsa, pl-â
âItâs Your Majesty to you, assuming I want to hear you speak at all. Do you have any idea what you did? Do you have any idea how much pain youâve caused?â she thundered, her once golden hair stark white as it blew around in the chill wind.
Kristoff stood up as his temper flared. âMe? I wasnât the one who disowned my own sister and threw her out of the only home sheâs known, Your Majesty,â he sneered, mocking her diminution of him. âIf you want to talk about causing pain⊠you know what, never mind. Thatâs not why Iâm here. Have you seen the purple aurora over the northern skies at night?â
Elsa scoffed. âWhat of it, ice harvester? Not that the kingdom has much need of your services any longer,â she jabbed at him. To spite him, sheâd made ice plentiful and free throughout Arendelle, ending his line of work entirely. While the citizens appreciated it for the most part, he and his fellow workers had needed to find other work.
âItâs dangerous, Your Majesty. Itâs magic of some kind that Pabbie canât stop and that can⊠can hurt people. We need your help, your magic, to stop it, to stop it from possibly destroying parts of the kingdom or hurting your subjects,â he pressed on, ignoring her insults and digs.
âAnd how would you know that? Last I checked, you had no powers of your own, nor were you much of a scholar or a gentleman,â she snapped at him, as frost slowly began to seep out from under her feet.
Kristoff shivered. The air around them was as cold as the North Mountain on a sunless winterâs day. He wasnât dressed for the cold, but she certainly seemed to be. Gone was the free-flowing azure ice dress and cape; the ice surrounding her looked like a more severe version of her coronation dress, the ice so dark a blue it was almost black. âI talked to Pabbie. He said it was, and⊠and itâs hurt me once already.â
Elsa cocked her head before a lopsided smirk crept on her lips. âDid it?â She turned, heading back towards the palace door before looking over her shoulder one last time at Kristoff. âPerhaps it will finish the job then, so that Iâm rid of you and can get my sister back.â Without another word, she waved her hand and the palace doors slammed shut in a gust of icy wind.
âElsa! Elsa, please!â he shouted at the closed doors, âYou have to help me stop it! Youâre the only one who can! Elsa! ELSA!â he pounded on the heavy wooden doors futilely.
Two guards slowly approached him, halberds drawn. âItâs time to move along, citizen,â one of them said, pointing the long polearm at him.
âELSA! ELSA!â he shouted, as another two guards took him by the elbows and dragged him through the courtyard, outside the gates. Once outside, they let him go, and he fell to his knees in front of the closed gates. âPlease,â he begged to no one save the gates, âplease, I canât go back!â
He lost track of how long he lay there, stirred only from his despair by the setting sun. Alarmed, he turned and looked towards the northern skies.
The aurora was over Arendelle proper, magenta lightning crackling inside.
âNo⊠no! No, I canât go back! Donât let me go! DONâT LET ME GO! ANNA!â He picked himself up and ran through the town towards the hills. Kristoff sprinted for his home; in his mind, he thought if he could make it home, if he could make it to the root cellar, heâd barricde himself in there for a day until the storm passed. Heâd be safe, and wouldnât have to go back to a life without Anna loving only him.
He made it as far as the first hill before the lightning struck him.
Authorâs Notes, Chapter 17
Not going to lie, writing ANY Kristanna was a weird experience for me, as was trying to crawl inside Kristoffâs head to understand him. There isnât a ton to his character, but I figured being orphaned and raised by trolls, in addition to his lack of manners/decorum, would also leave him with a sense of abandonment, sort of an attachment disorder. Having Anna love him and losing that would be a lot more punishing to him.
This chapter was lengthy and part of the reason I started to doubt these later chapters. SO much exposition was necessary to understand Kristoffâs perspective that it was detracting from the Elsanna relationship.
We next move into Chapter 18, which is Anna wandering through the woods. In the official story, this is Chapter 17, and has no Kristoff at all in it.
Directorâs Cut, Chapter 18: I Wonder as I Wander
Anna walked down the dusty lane, passing by houses with neat slate roofs and diagonal wooden fences. The trees wavered in the stiff springtime breeze, the scent of the ocean always present. Overgrown thatch and large grey boulders dotted the side of the road as she walked up the hills of Arendelleâs outer limits, hundreds of meters above the palace in the distance. She rested against one of the larger fenceposts, admiring the view, as her thoughts wandered.
I wonder what it would be like to live up here, someplace quiet, someplace without all the hustle and bustle of the palace, she mused, watching a few children playing in one of the yards. I wonder what it would be like if it were just Elsa and me.
She started at that thought, wondering where it had come from. Was it from that passionate kiss Elsa had given her yesterday? Or the tales of Elsa being with the other Anna, married to her. Without thinking, her hand lifted itself to her lips, and she lightly brushed her index and middle fingers over her lower lip where Elsa had run her tongue.
Should I be disgusted? Itâs not like we havenât kissed each other hundreds of times when we were little kids, and even after the Great Thaw, she thought.
âKissed who?â a voice broke through her thoughts, and she shrieked before looking down to find Olaf.
âOlaf! What are you doing here?â
âOh, you know, just wandering around pondering the great mysteries of life, listening to people have conversations with each other and with themselves standing on a hill overlooking the city,â he blurted, winding up for a good ramble.
Anna sighed. âNow is not the time, Olaf. I was⊠I was just thinking⊠out loud, I guess.â She looked back out at the fjord, her eyes unfocusing.
Olaf looked out for a moment, his brow scrunched as he tried to figure out what Anna was staring at, and scratched his head. âWhat were you thinking about?â
âItâs nothing, itâs just⊠well⊠can you keep a secret?â
âYes! I mean maybe. It depends on the secret. And whoâs asking me about the secret. Actually, no. I canât keep a secret at all. But you can tell me anyway,â he offered with a guileless smile.
Anna gave a soft laugh as she hugged herself. âI⊠well, I can never fault you for your honesty, Olaf. Letâs just say something happened recently and Iâm not sure what to think about it.â
âYou kissed someone?â
âThe opposite, actually. Someone kissed me and I⊠I donât know how I feel about it,â she sighed, remembering how awkward and uncomfortable she felt in the dining room. Else had apologized profusely in her Ice Palace, and Anna had forgiven her, but she still couldnât erase the sensation from her mind. Was it a good sensation? It was shocking, but was it unpleasant? She couldnât remember.
âWas it Kristoff? He talks about kissing you a lot, and he always tells me to keep that secret, so maybe itâs the same thing, right?â
Anna pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaled, mentally counting to five. Kristoff was the last person she wanted to think about right at that moment. But as Olafâs words sunk in, she considered his mention of Kristoff and realized while her Elsa had vanished in the future, she hadnât thought about or even talked to Kristoff once during the entire incident.
She didnât need him, not to the same way that he seemed to need her.
She did need her sister. As her sister, her best friend, her confidante, as Queen of the nation. But as a romantic interest? She wasnât sure what to make of the idea, and started to walk down the road, idly tracing her finger along the fence as Olaf followed, confused at her lack of response.
âWait, is kissing something you only do if you love the person?â Olaf asked as he waddled behind Anna.
âWell⊠yes. You know that, Olaf. Weâve talked⊠at length, I might add⊠about what is appropriate behavior around other people. Remember what we said about warm hugs?â she snickered, recalling many long talks by Elsa about how warm hugs were something most people werenât comfortable with, despite Olafâs genial nature. Those same talks also extended to telling him not to kiss other people who didnât ask to be kissed, and keeping his hands out of other peopleâs mouths, except for Sven. He didnât understand why someone wouldnât want a warm hug or a kiss, and the discussion went in circles for over an hour.
âWarm hugs are best with warm friends,â he muttered sullenly, before one of his mercurial mood shifts. âWait, so that means the person who kissed you must love you a lot! Are you going to marry them? Will you have babies with them? Why are you blushing so much? Are you overheating?â
Anna covered her ears with her hands as her breathing sped up. âOlaf. Olaf! Not⊠not now, okay. Just⊠relax. Iâm trying to figure out what the person meant by kissing me like⊠like they did. Whether it means anything or not, okay? Iâm certainly not going to do⊠those other things you mentioned.â She tamed her breathing as her heart slowed back down to normal.
âI bet it was Elsa,â he blurted out.
Anna stumbled and pinwheeled against the rail fence, knocking a few slats loose before falling backwards into someoneâs garden. âOlaf! You canât say things like that! Sheâs my sister! Sheâs my sister AND sheâs the Queen!â She looked around furtively, making sure no one was obviously listening in. âBesides, sisters do not kiss each other⊠that way,â she stage whispered, as she carefully reset the fence pieces.
Olaf scratched his head with one of his twig arms. âWhy not? You love each other. You just said people only kiss when they love each other like that. And you do plenty of other things together-â
âOlafâŠâ she shook her head, a headache beginning to press against her temples, âthatâs a different kind of love than what weâre talking about. Itâs not the same-â Anna looked at the curve in the road ahead, spotting one of the local families, the Larsens, out in their yard. The Larsens were one of the many families with children who knew and loved Olaf, and Anna immediately let out a sigh of relief. âWe can talk about this another time, Olaf. Right now, it looks like Harald and Anders would like to see you instead,â she indicated, waving at the young boys calling Olafâs name.
The little snowman toddled off to go play with friends as Anna scurried quickly past the house before he could change his mind. She walked further up the road, climbing the steep hill that led almost to the outer stone walls of the city. She reached the uppermost tower, looking down at the entirety of the fjord as it sparkled in the sunlight.
Anna sat in the grass, mulling over Olafâs clumsy but truthful words. How did her sister love her, that she felt comfortable enough to kiss her like a lover? Was her trip to the future, to that other reality, so dramatic and changing that she became a different person in just a week, or did Elsa harbor these kinds of feelings before she ever left, and simply didnât tell Anna?
She picked a nearby daisy, staring at it idly as a cool wind from the mountains gently swept over the hills, ruffling her bangs. Her French tutor had taught her effeuiller la marguerite, plucking of the daisy. Anna began to pluck the petals off the daisy as she mulled over Elsaâs actions, mindlessly reciting the traditional French. Elle mâaime un peu - beaucoup - passionĂ©ment - Ă la folie - pas du tout. She loves me a little, a lot, passionately, to madness, not at all.
She gave a bitter laugh as the last petal settled on passionĂ©ment, she loves me passionately. Olafâs words came back to haunt her once more. âYou do plenty of other things togetherâ, heâd said. And it was true. Her and Elsa hugged each other as though they hadnât seen each other for years, even if theyâd only been apart a half hour. They held hands all the time. They walked through the city square, arm in arm like a couple at every festival and holiday. They slept in the same bed more often than not, curled up against each other like cats. Was that the behavior of siblings or someone else? She had no basis for judgement, and it wasnât like she could go knocking on doors around town to ask people.
Did Elsa love her romantically?
She swallowed, her throat dry at the implications. Did Elsa love her romantically enough to want to⊠be intimate? Annaâs stomach flipped at the thought.
Why was Elsa behaving like this? Why did they behave the way they did in general, so much more close than others? Some of it was unquestionably the thirteen long years theyâd been separated by their parents, to protect her from Elsaâs magic. That separation left deep scars in both of them, wounds that only each otherâs presence soothed. They needed each other to remind the other that neither was alone.
Anna had occasionally wondered whether they were even properly sisters, having spent more time apart than together. Yet they werenât truly apart, not in their hearts. Elsa never saw her in person all those years, but they talked daily, backs against Elsaâs door, complaining quietly about their studies, laughing together, making gifts for each other. Sheâd made a bakerâs dozen of Olaf-shaped gifts for her older sister, one each Christmas. More than a few times, her father had scooped up her sleeping body from Elsaâs door, carrying her back to her room.
She contemplated the romantic relationships sheâd had. Hans, for as little as that had lasted, was a whirlwind. Looking back, she never loved him, but she absolutely loved the idea of being in love, and he was the first person that had ever shown interest - that had the opportunity to show interest - in her.
And then there was Kristoff. Anna let out a heavy sigh, her shoulders slumping. He was a wonderful person. Strong, loving, caring, selfless, dedicated, loyal⊠virtually everything she could ever want in a best friend. Yet she could see how he felt about her, how every glance was filled with pregnant pauses and longing so dire, it was like watching a thirsty man in a desert crawling towards an oasis. And despite it all, she felt⊠nothing. None of what sheâd dreamed of, none of what she imagined being swept off her feet by a handsome prince would feel like.
To her heart, Kristoff was lumped in the same category as Olaf and Sven. Lovable, people she could and did love, but not someone she could be in love with. And therein was the problem. She wanted to be closest of friends. He wanted something different. Am I afraid to feel that way towards someone? she questioned, tossing the plucked daisy petals into the wind.
Anna brushed the grass and dirt off her green dress as she stood, starting the long walk back towards the palace. Going for a walk had been meant to clear her head, not clutter it more, she lamented with a rueful chuckle to herself.
Sheâd been so intent on discerning how Elsa felt about her that she forgot one key aspect to consider: how she felt about her sister. But before her mind took her down that avenue, she was back at the palace gates⊠and confused.
Bulda, Cliff, and several of the rock trolls from the Valley of Living Rock were waiting outside the doors to the palace.
âBulda? What are you all doing here? Is Kristoff all right? Did something happen with Pabbie?â she asked, worried that the elder troll had⊠fallen ill or something. Did the trolls get ill, she wondered? Could they even get ill? Before her mind went down another rambling path, Bulda waddled over and embraced Anna as best as the little troll could.
âNo, my dear, everything is fine with Kristoff as far as we know. We saw him a little more than a week ago for dinner, he and Sven seemed good. No, Grand Pabbie is here to see your sister.â
Anna nodded, finally spotting Pabbie near the front of the small crowd. âCome on, Iâll take you up to see her,â she said, nodding to the guards to open the palace doors. Open court wasnât for another day, so the doors were guarded; Elsa had kept the gates open, but generally, the citizens werenât in the palace except for open court. As they walked through the corridors, Pabbie would occasionally raise a rocky hand up, as though he were trying to catch something invisible out of the air.
âIs something wrong, Pabbie?â
The elder rock troll nodded. âI was here⊠not more than eight days ago now, isnât it?â He looked to Annaâs nod before going on. âYet everything feels different, feels as though something is wrong. I have felt this way for several days now, since Queen Elsaâs return. Tell me, Anna, is she quite all right? Is she⊠herself?â
Anna blushed slightly, Pabbieâs words invoking her railyard full of thoughts from her afternoon wanderings. âYes, she is. Sheâs back from⊠wherever it was that she was, and nearly everything is exactly the same.â
âNearly everything?â
âShe had some eye-opening experiences, but sheâs the same old Elsa as always,â Anna nervously laughed, quickening her pace up the stairs to the Queenâs chambers. Before Pabbie could inquire further, they reached Elsaâs door and Anna knocked on it. A moment later, Elsa opened it, expecting only Anna. Her eyes widened at the host of trolls with her sister.
âHello?â
Anna ushered Pabbie inside; the rest of the group stayed in the hallway, curled back up into large round rocks. After the door closed, Elsa sat on the small divan in her antechamber, looking expectantly at her guests with a slight frown. Anna sat on the other end of the divan; after her wandering, she wasnât sure what to feel around her sister.
âYour Majesty,â Pabbie cleared his throat, âI have come to you in seek of your assistance.â
âOf course, Pabbie, anything we can do to help, you know that.â Elsa scooted just a tiny bit towards Anna and reached out her hand. Like a reflex, Anna clasped her sisterâs hand as they gave their full attention to the troll elder.
âYour Majesty, tell me. Have you noticed anything strange about your magic since your return from your magical journey?â The elder troll walked in a slow circle around the antechamber as his eyes slid over the walls. Had he needed to breathe, he might have been doing so slowly and deeply.
Elsa tilted her head slightly to one side. âN-no, nothing out of the ordinary, but I also havenât had much call to use my powers since my return. Is there something I should be looking for?â She looked briefly out of the side of her eye at Anna, who had done the same.
Pabbie appeared not to notice, instead walking from the antechamber to the double doors leading to the balcony overlooking Arendelleâs town center. âYour Majesty, if I may ask your indulgence?â he gestured, stretching out his hand. Elsa stood and walked over, opening the doors. The warm spring breeze wafted into the room, a few small flower petals carried on the wind swirling into the room.
âWhat would you like me to do, Pabbie?â
âFar from the town, in the fjordâs harbor if you will, please summon the largest block of ice you can, Majesty.â He turned his eyes to the sparkling waters, waiting for Elsa to bring some ice into existence.
She closed her eyes, released the breath she was holding, and extended her arms straight out, slowly lifting them over her head. Snowflakes danced around her wrists and palms, sunlight glinting off the ice crystals. In the blink of an eye, a beam of frost shot from her fingertips over the town, touching the water. Immediately, hexagonal spikes of ice began to grow in the harbor, small at first, the size of a pencil. In another breath, they grew to the size of tree branches, then tree trunks.
The ice crackled in the distance, sounding more like an avalanche as it continued to grow. After a few breaths, Elsa opened her eyes and gasped. In the harbor was a chunk of ice half the height of the North mountain. âPabbie! What- did you know that would happen?â She wove her fingers as though she were knitting, and the iceberg crumbled to pieces, splashing into the water and fading from existence.
Pabbie nodded slowly, tapping the tips of his stone fingers together. âIt is as I suspected, Your Majesty.â He plodded back inside, Elsa following behind him as she closed the French doors silently. Anna stared at the two of them, waiting to hear what it was Pabbie was looking for.
âTell me, Your Majesty⊠how did that feel? How much effort was that for you?â
Elsa started to answer before she closed her mouth, pursed her lips, and glanced out the doors. She looked down at her hands, fingers extended, as though the magic was still flowing through her into the harbor. âNone⊠none at all. Usually something that large is draining, tiring. I remember after I created my ice palace on the North Mountain, I was exhausted for a few hours.â She looked up. âWhy is that?â
Pabbie puttered around the room for a long moment. âSomething⊠something is changing the very nature of magic in our world, Elsa. Something dangerous is coming, something that is altering how magic works, amplifying it, making it stronger. I do not know why or how, only that it is happening, and it bodes ill for all of us.â He motioned for Anna to draw the curtains closed.
Once the room was dark, he summoned one of his farseer visions, ethereal light floating in the room above their heads. Though Anna had no other frame of reference for it, it reminded Elsa of some of the TV shows sheâd binged in the future.
âWhen the red aurora, as you had called it, came by the first time, it grazed our region. That was what took you on your magical journey, Elsa,â he murmured as the vision of the aurora appeared, sweeping across the sky, bolts of lightning hitting the ground. One bolt struck Arendelleâs palace, exactly where Elsa had been standing a little more than a week ago.
âAnd that brought us the imposter,â Anna snarked, remembering the other worldâs Elsa.
âThis is why I came to see you, Majesty.â He raised his hands again, and the previous vision faded away. A new aurora took shape, this one a giant red swirling storm, as though you were looking at a thunderstorm, but through a massive fire. The storm in Pabbieâs vision approached Arendelle again, but instead of soaring across the sky as lightning emerged from it, this time it engulfed all of Arendelle in brilliant red flame, before Arendelle crumbled to dust.
Anna gasped, her hand flying to her mouth as she recognized what was happening in the vision. Elsa hugged her close, eyes transfixed on the vision as it faded. âIs⊠does that mean what I think it means?â
Pabbie slowly nodded, his voice low and hushed, almost reverent. âIt does, Your Majesty. Whatever storm caused you to switch places in the first place, somehow it is coming back. And this time it will destroy all of Arendelle.â
Authorâs Notes, Chapter 18
You can see how much longer the wandering through the fields was in the official, final version of the story. This is a glimpse into how I write - each chapter of a story goes through four phases. The first is the ugly first draft phase, where I get the skeleton of the story outlined and written. The second phase is first edit, where I add details and embellishments. The third phase is preflight - this is where I look at my standard writing template and inspect the story.
The template I use goes like this: action, reaction, dialogue, emotion. What happened? What were the charactersâ observable reactions? What did they say, either outwardly or inwardly? And how do they feel? The above chapter only got through phase 2, which is why itâs so different from what you read in the ârealâ Chapter 17. Itâs missing a lot of those reactions and inner dialogue pieces that I write in later, when Iâm checking that what was in my head at the time I wrote made it to the page.
To give you a sense of when this was being worked on, I was writing Chapter 18 around the time chapter 3 was published, April 25 of 2021. I try to write at least 50% of the story before I publish even one chapter. One of the things I hate most is an unfinished story that I really enjoy, so to prevent doing that to anyone else, I try to bank at least half the story before I go live. By the 50% mark I have a good sense of whether or not Iâm going to finish the story or not.
Directorâs Cut, Chapter 19: The Fall of Arendelle
Anna surveyed the landscape as she and Elsa rode in the coach away from the palace, the morning sun eerily bright, as though even the sun were stronger. To her eye, not much else seemed different, but after Pabbieâs haunting warnings the previous night, she was on edge. Every tree hid some nefarious villain from the fairy tales sheâd read as a child; every shadow contained some kind of ghost or evil spirit. At each bump in the road, sheâd instinctively clutch Elsaâs hand.
For her part, Elsa was much more calm. Whatever the reason that doom approached Arendelle, it made her powers that much stronger as well. She recalled the struggle, the drain sheâd felt trying to stop the chemical weapon in the future, how close to tapping all her power she was to save that Anna. Last night, when Pabbie had her freeze part of the harbor, sheâd channeled what felt like twice the power and was none the worse for wear. As long as her powers increased commensurate with the threat, she felt confident she could keep her sister safe.
âWhere are we going, anyway?â Anna wondered aloud.
âPabbie said there was something he felt just past the North Mountain, in the Black Mountains. Some kind of magic he wasnât familiar with,â Elsa pointed out on a map sheâd brought along. Anna scooted to the same side in the coach, looking carefully at the map as Elsa fidgeted. After her untoward display of affection the other day, she was hesitant about being too close to Anna, lest she lose control of her emotions again.
Who would have thought conceal, donât feel would have been something I needed to say to myself again? she thought with a wry grin, giving her sister a sidelong glance.
As they approached the Black Mountains, Elsaâs head began to throb ever so gently, as though someone were pushing on her temples with just a finger or two. Not enough to hurt, not even enough to be a nuisance, but enough that she noticed it. Trying not to disturb Anna, who had fallen asleep an hour earlier with her head in Elsaâs lap, she reached her hand out and cast an intense beam of frost at a passing rock formation. What should have been a concentrated burst of magic needing all her focus was as easy as tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.
Elsa frowned. Her magic, her powers shouldnât be that easy. Whatever this phenomenon was, it was getting stronger the closer they got to the Black Mountains and Pabbieâs magical source. She began to stroke Annaâs hair absentmindedly as the royal coach rumbled along the dirt roads. How did she feel about her sister? More important, how did her sister feel about her? Anna had come back from her walkabout only to run into Pabbie and the trolls, and sheâd been unusually quiet for the rest of the evening.
Of course, Elsa chuckled to herself, being told that a magical phenomenon was about to destroy everything would tend to have that effect on anyone, but she still wondered if Anna really had forgiven her for her lapse in judgement.
Her treacherous heart scolded her. Thereâs no lapse in judgement. You love her in all the ways you can love someone, sister or not. Her mouth suddenly felt dry, and she closed her eyes, pushing away the thoughts for another time. Just as sheâd begun to feel drowsy from the motion of the horses, a vibration stirred her senses. She looked out the coach window and saw the wooden bridge they were crossing begin to shake.
Then the world fell out from under them.
Without thinking, Elsa reached out with her hands, surrounding her and Anna in thick ice, turning the inside of the carriage into a solid block of ice. Once the falling sensation had stopped, she closed her eyes and the ice vaporized, revealing that theyâd fallen to the bottom of a chasm. Almost nothing was left of the carriage except splinters and boards; she could see no sign of the horses or the driver. Had she not surrounded herself and her sister in the ice, they likely would have been pulverized by the fall.
Anna clasped onto Elsaâs shoulders as she looked up, seeing the shambles of the bridge above them. Whatever had caused it to fall was incredibly destructive; almost nothing remained of the bridge at all. She hyperventilated and shook, terrified at what had just happened. Sheâd awoken just as the ice had encased her, and for a brief moment, she was back on the icy fjord, her body turning to ice as she saw Hansâ sword descending towards her sister.
âAnna, Anna!â Elsa gripped her sisterâs forearms, âItâs okay. Weâre okay, weâre safe. Calm down, please! Iâve got you, okay?â
âWh-what happened, Elsa? One minute I was asleep, the next minute Iâm standing at the bottom of a canyon with the shattered remains of our carriage around us?â She looked around, eyes wide as she expected some kind of threat - wild wolves, monsters, spirits, anything.
Elsa shook her head. âIâm not sure. We were crossing the bridge and then suddenly we were falling. Letâs⊠letâs get back up to the road and see if we can spot what happened.â
âDo you think thatâs safe? What if- what if it was an ambush, somehow?â
Elsa reached out her hands and icy armor began to appear over both the women, covering them head to toe just as sheâd done for the other Anna in the future. Once they were fully armored, she lifted her hands and both she and Anna levitated up the side of the cliff until they reached the top. Sheâd guided them as she once did Olaf towards the top of a Christmas tree, silently gliding behind some trees in case there was some unknown threat.
When they reached the top of the ridge, they realized what had caused the bridge to collapse. The hill they stood on itself was shaking, trembling as though there were an earthquake. Elsa held her hands out to the side, keeping their feet off the ground as it shook, boulders tumbling down into the ravine.
Anna swallowed, looking down at the ground below them. Had they stayed in the ravine with the remains of their coach, they would almost certainly have been killed by the rockslides as the sides of the ravine caved in.
After a few long moments, the tremors abated and Elsa set them back down on the earth, quite a safe distance from the crumbled ledge. âWhat in the world was that?â Anna asked, touching the ground with one hand gingerly, as though the soil would leap up and bite her. âDamn, Elsa. We are hours away from the palace, and I donât think too many people live this far out. What are we gonna do?â
Elsa shook her head. âI didnât see any sign of the horses or driver either. Iâm afraid they probably perished in the initial bridge collapse.â She looked around, ensuring no one was nearby, then smiled as she raised her hands over her head. In a flash, two horses made of snow and ice rose from the ground, fully tacked and ready to ride.
âWhoa! I didnât know you could do that!â
âI saw it in⊠well, I saw it in something your future self had shown me.â Elsa regarded the snow horses with a wistful smile. During her binge-watching marathon in the future, sheâd seen a video where a frost mage conjured up an ice dragon to ride; while a dragon flying over the skies of Arendelle would certainly be expedient, it wouldnât do much good for the nerves of her subjects. Two white horses, on the other hand, would be relatively inconspicuous, especially at a distance.
They both mounted their horses and began riding the road towards the Black Mountains again. Just as they crossed over the next hill, the sky turned from its normal topaz color to a dull purple. Elsa massaged her temples with two fingers, feeling additional pressure on her head. In the distance, down in the valley, they watched as what looked like thunderclouds gathered over valley, violet lightning crackling around the edges of a circular cloud formation.
âWhatâŠâ Anna started, dumbfounded by the display of magic in front of her. Something in the valley was shooting a bright magenta beam into the clouds. The beam began to pulse and surge, sounding like a dog growling and a hawk screeching combined. She felt a heat on her face, like sitting too close to a campfire, as the beam pulsed faster, the cacaphony of sound growing louder and more insistent. âElsaâŠâ she murmured, looking down at their ice armor. Droplets of water were forming on the surface as waves of heat washed over the valley.
âI see it, Anna,â she acknowledged, weaving her fingers to strengthen the ice surrounding them. Their armor crystallized once more, and their horses regained their strength. âThis is probably going to get worse the closer we get to⊠whatever that is.â
Just then, a deep, sonorous voice boomed across the valley. âI SEE YOU, FIFTH SPIRIT. YOUR POWERS MEAN NOTHING HERE!â
Anna turned to look at her sister. âWhoâs he talking to? Whatâs a fifth spirit?â
âBeats me,â Elsa shrugged. She urged her horse forward, closing in on the center of the commotion. She could make out what looked like a giant cauldron of some kind and four stone arches, resembling fingers grasping towards the sky. Violet lightning crackled from the tips, and as they closed the distance, the smell of sulphur suffused the air.
Elsa held her hands in front of her as they approached the elaborate setup, a black-robed figure standing with his arms high above his head. She nudged the wind to carry her words more loudly as she sat tall in the saddle. âI am Elsa, Queen of Arendelle, and I command you to stop whatever it is you are doing!â she thundered.
High-pitched cackling reverberated around the canyon. âYou are too late, Elsa of Arendelle. Soon my masterâs bidding shall be done, and we will usher in the paradise he so richly deserves! BEHOLD!â The robed figure turned towards the cauldron as vivid purple light glowed from its contents. Its beam lit up the darkened sky around them, and then in a flash of purple lightning, the sisters saw it just over the next mountain.
The red aurora. Only this time it was a vivid blue, almost the color of Elsaâs eyes.
The storm was barreling through the summoned clouds, azure lightning crackling everywhere. Behind it, fires sprang up as the landscape almost seemed to be torn up, as though it was somehow a tornado, ripping everything from the ground under it.
Anna gasped. âElsa! What- we have to stop this somehow!â Ignoring the dangers, Anna leapt forward and punched the robed figure, knocking him to the ground. âWho is your master? Tell me how to stop this!â she shouted, grabbing the robed figure by the hood and threatening to punch him again.
âI am,â a familiar voice echoed from the trees nearby. âI am his⊠employer, Anna. But donât worry, okay? In just a few moments, everything is going to be perfect again.â
âKRISTOFF? What the hell are you doing here?â
âWhat is the meaning of this, Kristoff?â Elsa echoed her sisterâs shock, shards of snow and ice circling her hands. She looked closely at the man as he emerged from the woods. It was indeed Kristoff, but⊠something was off. His eyes had a wild, faraway look; his hair was thoroughly unkempt. His clothes, normally a little worn, were torn and appeared to be covered in⊠dried blood? Her jaw dropped at the manâs appearance.
He broke into a smile as he reached the cauldron, the crowâs feet around his eyes crinkling. âAnna, believe me when I say this is for the best, okay? Itâs going to be perfect, youâll see.â His voice gave lie to the promises of perfection, as though he had been hollowed out from the inside, an empty shell of a man.
âWhat the hell are you talking about, Kristoff? Whatâs going to be perfect? What did you do?â
Kristoff chuckled, a guttural laugh so different from how he normally sounded. âThis fine gentleman that you just almost knocked unconscious told me he could help amplify magic, concentrate the magic around Arendelle to bring back⊠that.â He pointed towards the sky with his thumb, the aurora ever closer. âYou donât understand, Anna, but you will. I sacrificed everything for you⊠for us.â
He regarded the cauldron with dark, haunted eyes. The ritual to summon that much magic in one place had come at a high cost; the warlock heâd hired had needed a magical creature to sacrifice and the blood of a pure love. The two twigs that had been Olafâs arms lay on the pile of firewood, next to Svenâs empty harness. He shook his head to clear it of what heâd had to do. In moments, he would have them both back, but the real versions of them. Olaf would be his child, and Sven would be the loyal hound that had been by his side for years.
âOnce it arrives here in a few minutes, you will know a life without pain, without sadness, with everything you could ever want. Itâs the greatest gift I could ever give you, Elsa, and all of Arendelle,â he smiled, sighing happily and looking like himself for the first time as he thought of his lost love.
âEnough!â Elsa whirled and directed a beam of frost at the cauldron, encasing it in ice easily. The purple beam dissipated, leaving only the blackened clouds overhead and the cerulean glow of the aurora, inching closer like a fire out of control in the forest. As the winds picked up, she heard Kristoff laughing again. âNice try, Elsa. However, anything you do now isnât going to matter. The storm will be here soon, and then youâll find perfect happiness too. Trust me, itâs for the best, okay?â
âThis isnât what you think it is, Kristoff! I was captured by that storm before, and it threw me into a different world! Whatever you think itâs going to do for you, it wonât!â she shouted over the howling wind, her arm raised to keep the flying debris from hitting her eyes.
Kristoff scrambled to a nearby boulder, standing tall on it, his arms outstretched as though he meant to hug the storm bodily. Into the gusts he howled with laughter. âAnna! Iâm coming home!â A blue bolt of lightning struck him and he vanished into thin air.
Elsa crouched down near the frozen cauldron, taking Annaâs hands in her own before pulling her into a tight hub. âIâm so sorry, Anna. I couldnât stop this, I couldnât stop whateverâs about to happen to us. Iâm so sorry. I love you, Anna, so much.â She leaned down and kissed Anna on the cheek as blue lightning surrounded them both.
âElsa, I love you too-â Anna managed before they both vanished.
Authorâs Notes, Chapter 19
It was at this point that thing went really off the rails and I started to realize I was writing myself into a corner. There was a whole mythology behind the auroras and such that I had in my head, and I realized I would need MASSIVE amounts of exposition just to explain some of it.
The original idea for the aurora came from two different franchises: The Flash, in which the Speed Force provides a gateway to multiple realities, and the Nexus, from Star Trek: Generations, probably the only interesting thing in that entire film.
You see hints of the aurora being the Speed Force in the official version chapters; the aurora is red in the beginning (corresponding to the Negative Speed Force), and gold when it returns Elsa to her proper time. The bit of lightning shaped like a man is a nod to the Flashâs use of the Speed Force and setting the timeline right. In my head, I had the original idea that it was the Flash and the Reverse Flash fighting each other which caused the original aurora that then had to be put right. Obviously, that was entirely in my head and didnât make it to the page and thankfully so - itâs entirely unnecessary to the story.
The trouble with the Speed Force is that it doesnât really work as a vehicle for explaining how Anna falls in love with Elsa. So I mentally pivoted to the aurora being more like the Nexus than the Speed Force, and that made things⊠worse.
Directorâs Cut, Chapter 20: Purgatory
Absolute darkness tends to be disorienting. Most people, most of the time, have at least a little bit of light to orient themselves, a way to sense even the basics of which way is up. Absolute darkness is not like that. With nothing to reference, nothing feels real, and the other senses have to take over.
Elsa woke in absolute darkness. After a few moments, she lifted her hand to cast one of her glowing snowflakes⊠and nothing happened. Her throat closed up as her chest tightened. What had happened, where had she been taken that her powers were unavailable to her?
Where was Anna?
She clambered to her hands and knees, slowly crawling in expanding concentric circles until she found a wall of wherever it was she had woken to. Wherever it was, the floor was cool to the touch and incredibly smooth, like polished marble. As her hands slid across the cool marble, she could feel the tips of her fingers getting cold, and breathed a sigh of relief. She hadnât lost her powers so much as something was suppressing them.
After a few more minutes of fumbling around, she felt some raised ridges in the floor. They too felt as cold as ice and as smooth as glass. Sheâd made out four of them, in some kind of formation, but she couldnât tell what. Elsa let out a short breath, frustrated, as she considered her situation. Nothing had changed; all she had were the uneven parts of whatever floor she was sitting on as reference.
She lay back, wondering what to do next, when the floor began to glow. A brilliant white light flashed once, blinding her momentarily, a gust of wind surging around her. As her eyes adjusted, she saw that the room was no longer completely dark; what looked like a giant ice cavern was around her, some kind of dome. The protrusions on the floor were visible now; they looked like four gigantic diamond-shaped crystals, embedded in the floor itself.
âWhat are you doing here?â an unfamiliar voice echoed in the chamber.
Seemingly from nowhere, a white-haired woman emerged from the shadows at the edge of the room. She wore what looked to be finely-crafted animal skins, something that Elsa had read about in her fatherâs journals, a people known as the Northuldra.
âI- where is here, and who are you?â
âWe were not supposed to meet for at least another year, Elsa of Arendelle.â
Elsa stared at this mysterious woman. How did she know her name, her title? And what did she mean about not meeting for another year?
âWhat do you mean? Who are you?â
The woman stepped forward, leaning slightly on a tall walking stick. âMy name is Yelana, first among equals in my people, the Northuldra. You are Elsa of Arendelle, the Fifth Spirit, and thisâŠâ she gestured around at the space, âis a place that our people call the in-between, a nexus between life and what we assume to be rebirth. It takes the shape and form of memories and dreams for most people who are stuck here, save for a few individuals born with the gift.â
Elsa quirked an eyebrow. âYou mean magical powers?â At the womanâs nod of acknowledgement, she continued. âWhat did you mean by Fifth Spirit? The warlock who caused this problem called me that. And what do you mean, stuck here?â
Yelana walked to the center of the chamber and tapped on the floor with her stick, summoning a brief burst of white light. âYes, magical powers. I was born with the gift of farsight. That is why we can have this conversation here, in this place, and why are you are unaffected by its illusions. Others, those who do not have the gift, are instead trapped in this place living out their dreams. They cannot see it for what it is: a prison.â She tapped her stick again, and the walls shimmered, revealing a kaleidoscope of different lives.
Elsa looked around, slack-jawed. She saw Kristoff with a golden-haired boy on his knee, with Anna looking over his shoulder. In the next, she saw Hans sitting on an enormous gilded throne, drinking from a goblet filled with a pale green liquor of some kind. Another image made her choke on her breath; she saw Agnar and Iduna sitting on a couch as her and her sister played at charades, Kai and Gerda sitting on a separate couch, sharing drinks. âThese⊠these are all the lives trapped in here? And this is what makes them happy?â
The elder nodded. âit is. Or at least, it is what they think makes them happy.â
âWhy imprison us?â
âI have never met any creature here that acts as a warden or jailer. It is a prison in that they cannot leave, but not because they have committed some crime; they simply cannot leave. It may well be⊠some kind of magic that preserves their essence.â Yelena tapped her stick once more, and the walls faded back to cobalt blue ice.
Elsa walked in a slow, wide circle around the room, touching her fingers to the walls. Instead of the coolness of ice, the walls felt warm and almost prickly, as though they were made of the static electricity that sometimes sparked from her woolen clothes. She regarded her situation carefully; she was caught here somehow, along with the mysterious woman Yelana, and everyone else she knew appeared to be imprisoned in their dreams. An idea sparked in her mind: if Pabbie was here, perhaps he was immune to its effects as well, being a creature of magical powers. She turned back to Yelana. âHow- how did we end up here?â
âYou remember the storm?â At Elsaâs nod, Yelana walked to the center of the room. She held her hand up, and part of the wall showed the valley where Elsa and Anna had been. The aurora, a stunning topaz color, swept over the valley, lightning striking the ground repeatedly. Elsa watched herself struck by lightning, vanishing, along with Anna - and then watching the valley burst into flames as the storm scraped the land clean.
âSo⊠everyone in Arendelle is here now? Are⊠are we dead?â
Yelana shook her head, a gentle chiming sound coming from her earrings. âNot dead, but not in the world any longer. This place, whatever it is, is in between life and death. We are timeless here; time has no meaning. Our physical bodies may be gone, but our essence is whole.â
âCan⊠can we leave?â
âThose who are not gifted, no. They are trapped for eternity in here. But for those of us who are gifted⊠yes. Some of us have even left and come back. My family is here, but of them, I am the only one gifted, so I have gone back once to see if anything was left after the storm. There⊠was nothing. Just a devastated land, bereft of all life.â
Elsaâs head swam with Yelanaâs explanations. Just as she had just started to wrap her head around being in the future, now she had to figure out whatâŠthis purgatory was. âHow long have you been here?â
Yelana laughed, a warm, comforting sound that reminded Elsa of her motherâs laughter. âI have always been here, Elsa. My gift, the gift of farsight, means that I was born into this realm as well as the earthly world we know. I suspect that I have been here my entire existence, and it is only my body that changes forms from life to life. That is how I knew we had not met yet, and that we were not supposed to meet at all until later. It is⊠challenging to be here, to see in any direction in time, but to be able to change very little of it. I wish I could have saved themâŠâ She looked at the wall, her shoulders sagging, as one facet snapped to life. A woman, close in Elsaâs age, was sitting around a campfire with a similar-looking man, as she cuddled a baby reindeer in her lap. âMy daughter, Honeymaren, and her brother, Ryder.â
âThey look⊠very happy together.â
âThey are. That is what I have struggled with. The people who are trapped in here are trapped in lifetimes of pure joy. I have asked myself many times if I should attempt to free them, but what kind of person am I if I take them away from a lifetime of joy? Is freedom worth that price? Is it really a prison if youâre happy in it?â
Elsa thought back to the mad look in Kristoffâs eyes, the look of someone who had been driven past the breaking point. The warlock he hired, the destruction he wrought - all so that he could get back to where he was happy. Kristoff had been the one to use black magic to bring the storm close, sacrificing thousands of lives for his own happiness.
âI⊠I donât know if itâs worth that price or not, Yelana. But I do know that someone who had that joy and lost it is responsible for all of us being here, being trapped. He⊠he must have been here before, and somehow got ripped out at the same time I traveled.â She looked down at her hands, as though she had been the one to cause Kristoffâs madness.
A thought disturbed her. In the future, she had searched for Arendelle and found no mention of it. Was this storm responsible for its destruction? Could that be why Anna was unable to find any mention of it? She mulled that over for a few moments before something else occurred to her.
âWhat about us? Everyone else is living lives of happiness and fulfillment. Why arenât we?â
Yelana sat down on the ground heavily, her eyes cast towards the crystals embedded in the floor. âOur gifts insulate us from whatever magic this place uses. Unfortunately, that also means we could not partake of that magic even if we wanted to. I have been here for longer than I can remember, and I will confess there have been plenty of times when I wish I could experience this magic instead, even knowing I would be captive. In some ways, it is the worst torment imaginable. I see the happiness of my family, but I cannot partake of it. Perhaps⊠I believe this is the price I must pay for my gift, for my powers.â
Elsa paced back and forth across the empty room, silently pondering their situation. âThe⊠the last time I was taken by the storm, I wasnât sent here. I was⊠sent some other place, a different time, a different world. Why is that?â
The elder woman tilted her head. âI⊠I do not know. Whatever this magic is, it is beyond anything I have seen before, and beyond my understanding. I am a part of it, but I have no sway over it. I just wish I could either be a part of my familyâs lives again⊠or not be here at all.â
âI⊠I know what you mean. If my sister were here, I could be happy. Whatever we are, as long as I was with her, it would be enough. Without herâŠâ she shook her head slowly, sinking to the floor next to Yelana. âCan⊠can you show me Annaâs life?â
Yelana looked at Elsa with a fierce, unblinking stare. âYou⊠may not want to see that, Fifth Spirit. To see what you cannot have is torture most profound. If I show you that, then it will be as if you were a hungry man outside a window, looking in on a feast that will never be yours. Do you really wish to see that?â
Elsa chuckled mirthlessly. âI am⊠familiar with the idea of wanting something I cannot have.â She stood back up, facing the icy wall that Yelana had shown before. âI am ready. Please, if you can, show me Annaâs life of happiness here.â
âAll right, Fifth Spirit. I will do as you ask, but please do not hold me at fault if⊠if it destroys any chance you have at happiness.â
Elsa gently clapped Yelanaâs shoulder and nodded. With that acknowledgment, the elder shaman tapped her stick on the floor once more and the walls shimmered to life.
Authorâs Notes: Chapter 20
Ugh. So this was the first idea behind Ahtohallan, as a sort of purgatory between magic worlds, a place where Fifth Spirits could regroup in cases of danger. Unfortunately, upon re-reading, this made absolutely no sense to me because itâs completely contradictory to canon, and weâre working with a canon-divergent story here.
This was also the point in the first draft where I went BACK and revised everything to be canon-divergent from Frozen 1 and not Frozen 2. Up until this point, Switching Places was set after Frozen 2, and it was a mighty mess to clean up the dates in the previous chapters once I bailed out on these directorâs cut chapters. Why? I needed Yelana to say âWhat are you doing here?â as shown above; Yelana needed to have prior knowledge of Elsa but Elsa couldnât have prior knowledge of Yelana.
In the end, I never used any of this, but I kept the canon divergence at F1 - and that worked well for Epilogue 2.
Directorâs Cut, Chapter 21: Shattered Joy
Anna heard but couldnât see her sister. The world was still dark, but she could hear Elsaâs quiet, soft laughter, smell the Christmas punch, and practically taste the holiday risengrynsgrĂžt, hot rice pudding with plenty of sugar, cinnamon, and butter.
The darkness was familiar as Annaâs senses fully awakened. She could feel the gentle swell of Elsaâs breasts pressing against her back as her sisterâs hands covered her eyes. A laugh burbled up inside her as Elsa cheered, âMerry Christmas Eve, Anna!â, removing her hands from her sisterâs eyes.
Anna adjusted to the light and saw the palaceâs Great Hall fully decked out. A large spruce stood in the center of the room, candles carefully lit and balanced throughout it. Pine garlands dressed the windows and walls. Small paper flags and other decorations hung from it in garlands, along with copious different snowflake cutouts. Laughter bubbled up inside her; they were just like the designs sheâd made as a little girl, constantly cutting them out and shoving them under Elsaâs door.
Before she could talk to Elsa about anything, Kai and Gerda entered the hall bearing trays of krumkake cookies shaped like little cones dusted with powdered sugar and steaming mugs of cocoa, as she clapped her hands with glee. She dug in right away, dipping the little baked pastries in the cocoa and moaning with delight. âItâs a good thing Papa keeps the palace so well stocked with Dutch cocoa,â she exclaimed through a mouthful of crumbled cookie, watching her sister do the same thing.
âIndeed it is, my darling,â Iduna smiled softly as she walked into the Great Hall dressed in her royal purple robes, arm in arm with Agnar. âMerry Christmas Eve to you both.â
Annaâs jaw dropped as fast as the krumkake she was holding. âMama! Papa! Youâre⊠youâre here!â She tossed the food aside and sprang to her feet, running at her parents and embracing them.
âMmm, we are here. Sorry, Anna, I know you like Christmas Eve to last long into the night. You always have, even when you were a little girl. Letâs try not to eat all the cookies in one sitting, if we can avoid it?â Agnar joked, grabbing a krumkake for himself as he pulled up one of the chairs from the side of the room, sitting down next to the blazing hearth. âAt least until after we ring in the season.â
âSpeaking of rings,â Iduna chuckled softly, âWhereâs yours, Anna?â Her mother smiled kindly and gestured towards Annaâs left hand.
Anna leapt to her feet. âDamn, I must have left it in my chambers. Iâll be right back, nobody move!â she shouted as she charged out of the room, hearing Elsa mutter that some things never change and Iduna scold her mildly about her use of profanity. Some things never did change; even though she was 20 years old, Iduna sometimes behaved as though she were still a little girl.
Anna swung the door open to her room and practically jumped on the bed. She looked around for a moment and smiled; there, on the night stand, was her ring. She picked it up, turned it carefully, and slipped it on her left ring finger.
She lay back on the bed, kicking her legs into the air and practically squealing with laughter. Despite her bristling at Iduna occasionally treating her like a little kid, she did smile to herself that sometimes she gave reason for it, like now. In the silver moonlight streaming in from her window, she turned her hand and admired the ring.
Her ring was silver and gold interwoven, like braided rope, with an intricately-shaped crocus as the setting. Inside the crocus was a snowflake, and at the center of that was a single diamond solitaire. As the light hit it, the diamond refracted it, making the snowflake sparkle and the crocus glow.
It was the perfect engagement ring for her.
Happiness - no, joy - suffused her entire being, like a warm woolen blanket she could just wrap herself in and feel safe and loved. Sheâd wanted a storybook wedding since she was little, complete with all the fanfare, pomp and circumstance that a royal wedding was supposed to have. Everything would be perfect, just like Elsa had promised.
She looked at her ring again. The glinting light bounced faceted beams across the walls and ceilings, and something about the way the light shone reminded her of⊠something, but she couldnât remember what. Anna shook her head, the cobwebs of confusion fluttering free. Never mind whatever memory it was, it was Christmas Eve, which meant it was time to exchange gifts!
Anna raced back downstairs, trying to remember what sheâd gotten everyone from the Christmas markets in Arendelle Square. As she barreled back into the Great Hall, memories raced back into her mind with equal vigor. For her father, sheâd gotten a beautiful brass sextant. For her mother, an intricately woven purple shawl to complement the one she already had. Iduna was quite protective of her shawl and Anna figured having a spare would be useful. And for her sisterâŠ
⊠confusion clouded Annaâs mind again. What had she gotten Elsa?
She looked down at her ring finger as her hand rested on the railing at the bottom of the staircase. The jewel glinted again in the candlelight as she heard her familyâs laughter, muffled by the doors.
âShit, did I forget TWO gifts? What did I get Elsa, and what did I get my fiancĂ©?â she wondered.
As she walked back into the Great Hall to the smiles and laughter of her family, another wave of memories washed over her. She looked fondly at her sister as Elsa passed a tray of crackers with cheese and smoked salmon to her mother. Anna sat down as they began to pass small wrapped packages to each other, and she could barely sit still from the excitement - not for receiving gifts, but giving them.
Iduna handed her a small box, giving Anna a soft smile as she did. The only name on the tag was a hand-drawn heart. Anna gleefully tore open the paper, opened the wooden box within, and pulled out a beautiful necklace on a silver chain. At the end of the chain was a mirrored crystal locket; Anna gingerly eased the clasp open to find the most exquisite, finely-crafted portrait miniature inside of her and her sister hugging.
She looked up, a tear pooling in the corner of her eye. âElsa! Oh my goodness, thank you so much! Itâs beautiful!â Anna walked across the room and sat down at Elsaâs feet. âPut it on for me?â she asked, looking up at her sisterâs topaz eyes.
Elsaâs cool fingers danced across her skin as she affixed the jewelry around Annaâs neck. âThere you are, a necklace fit for a princess.â The pendant hung down, slipping inside of her blouse where it rested almost against her heart. Elsa leaned down. âI love you, baby,â she murmured, softly kissing Annaâs lips.
âI love you too,â Anna managed between kisses. The moment felt like it lasted forever, just her and her sister kissing after exchanging gifts. Out of the corner of her eye, Anna noticed Elsa was wearing a ring on her ring finger too. The candlelight caught in the diamond solitaire, a tiny flash of light on Annaâs eye, and it was at that moment she remembered that Elsa was not only her sister, but also her fiancĂ©e.
Another bolt of confusion flashed through her mind. For a brief moment, she remembered her parents being gone, gone away somewhere, and Elsa being missing for a large part of her childhood. Anna blinked, shaking her head free of the confusing memories. Her parents were right here, sipping warm jul beer by the fire, and her sister⊠Elsa had been the rock in her life for so many years.
Anna smiled at the memories. Theyâd grown up together so close. She remembered doing goofy things like taking baths together, silly stuff like picking each othersâ noses as little kids, building snowmen every winter, having so many sleepovers that the number of nights they slept in their own respective beds could have been counted on one hand. Then once Elsa reached the age of ascension, everything changed.
The ceremony that day had been short; Elsa had stood in front of the church, Agnar and Iduna on either side of her, as she knelt down at the altar. Agnar touched the crocus scepter to each of her shoulders and the top of her head, signifying that she was now Crown Princess Elsa, eligible to assume the throne should the situation arise. That night, as they lay in bed together, ELsa had rolled over, a serious look in her eyes.
âAnna?â
âHmm?â
âI⊠I have to tell you something, something important.â
Anna rolled over, tearing her gaze away from the ceiling as she regarded her sisterâs outline in the silver moonlight. âWhat is it, sis? You know you can tell me anything.â
Elsa squeezed her eyes closed. âPapa said now that Iâm of age, I need to start thinking about a suitor. Someone⊠someone who could be at my side when the day comes⊠when I sit on the Crocus Throne.â She swallowed, her throat bobbing, before she continued, her voice a hoarse whisper. âBut⊠I donât want to do that. I donât want⊠I donât want to lose us, you know?â
She reached over and clasped Annaâs hand in her own. âI⊠I need us, you know?â
âYouâll always have me, Elsa. You know that,â Anna grinned, lacing her fingers with her sisterâs. âNothing and no one will ever tear us apart. Weâve been best friends since I was born, it feels like.â
Elsa looked down at their clasped hands as her cheeks darkened. âWhat⊠what if I want more than that, Anna? What if thatâs not enough?â
âWhat⊠what do you mean, sis?â Anna regarded her sister curiously, staring into her eyes.
âI⊠you know what, never mind. I shouldnât say anything more. Iâm going to make things uncomfortable.â Elsa withdrew her hands from her sisterâs and gripped the blankets so tight that Anna swore she heard the fabric starting to tear.
âElsa⊠you can tell me. I promise, itâs okay. Whatever it is, you can tell me.â Anna cupped her sisterâs cheek and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead.
âI⊠love you, Anna.â Elsa squeezed her eyes closed as she forced the words out of her mouth.
Anna giggled. âI love you too, sis! Why was that so hard to say?â
Elsa shook her head, her braid accidentally whacking her in the nose. âNo, what I mean is⊠I love you. I- Iâm in love with you, Anna. If I could choose a suitorâŠâ she rolled to face away from her sister, unable to utter her thoughts while looking at her face. âIf I could choose, I would choose you, Anna. I would rather marry you,â she breathed.
She felt an arm wrap around her stomach, and the warmth of her sister behind her. âElsa⊠why canât you choose that?â
Elsa barked a short, sharp laugh. âBesides being sisters, which would be scandalous enough, thereâs also the matter of an heir to the throne. It would literally be impossible, Anna, as much as I would love it.â She rolled back over and gently brushed her sisterâs coppery bangs with her fingers. âI would love nothing more than to have you as my queen, my soulmate, my love.â
âThen letâs figure out a way to make that happy, okay?â Anna smiled before pulling her sister into a crushing embrace. âBecause you know what? Iâll tell you a secret too, Elsa.â Anna rolled on top of her sister, laying prone and making as much contact as she could, head-to-toe. âIâm in love with you, too.â
Theyâd done extensive research on all the royal families of Europe and learned that when it came to keeping bloodlines pure, almost nothing was off-limits except allowing commoners to taint royal blood. Theyâd petitioned their parents shortly thereafter, and much to their great surprise, neither Agnar nor Iduna had strongly objected. Agnar was still young himself; he was still strong and healthy, and would probably reign for at least a couple more decades, so the question of heirs was put off.
The following month, Elsa had proposed after having the rings made. Sheâd dropped to one knee in the Great Hall one evening after a family dinner, and Anna had squealed a resounding âyes!â to the applause of their parents and the castle staff in the room.
Annaâs reverie faded, as did her gentle laughter. She was still sitting on the floor, her fingers still brushing the crystal pendant. She looked up to see Elsa smiling at her, and she reached out to pull her sister into a fierce hug. âThank you, Elsa! It really is perfect.â
âIâm glad you like it, sweetheart. Are⊠are you sure you like it? You were quiet there for a really long time.â
âI love it!â Anna ran her fingers over the cold crystal again, admiring the facets. She held it up to the candlelight, seeing the rainbow light refracting off the crystal. And at just the right angle, she saw Elsaâs face⊠and a beam of sapphire light just behind Elsaâs head.
It doesnât take much to break a dam; a small hole is often all thatâs needed for the waters to burst through, destroying the entire thing. Memoryâs much the same; once a crack appears in the dam holding repressed memories, the entire thing tends to break.
The expression on Annaâs face shifted from joy to surprise to horror, her eyebrows climbing for her hairline as her jaw headed for her chest. The memories of this life shattered like warmed glass made too cold, too fast. Cracks appeared and then suddenly, her life as Elsaâs sister and fiancĂ©e exploded into tiny shards.
The aurora. The storm that threatened to wipe out Arendelle, threatened to hurt or kill everyone she knew, destroy everything sheâd worked so hard for, suffered so much for.
Anna looked around the room. Agnar and Iduna werenât here, not really. They were lost somewhere in the South Sea, their ship sunk in a storm. And Elsa⊠her sister, not her fiancĂ©e, had locked herself away for 13 years to protect her little sister from devastating magical powers⊠powers that had frozen the whole kingdom.
It had all seemed so real, so vivid, so⊠perfect. And the last memories snapped into place as she thought that. Kristoff, a manic look on his face, telling them that life would be perfect. This was what he was willing to sacrifice everything for, what he was willing to kill everyone for.
She ran to hug Agnar and Iduna, to embrace the remarkable illusion she knew them to be, to savor being in her parentsâ arms one last time, even as she felt the lie of the life she was witnessing begin to fade.
Within moments, Arendelle and the palace faded away, and she was left sitting on the floor of a blank, featureless room. âIt was perfect, but it was a lieâ, she murmured aloud as she got to her feet, tears streaming down her cheeks. She raised a hand and snuffled loudly as she got her bearings in⊠wherever she was. It was an empty room, the walls, floor, and ceiling all a dark blue, as though it were made of something⊠like ice.
Before she could process any more, a womanâs voice echoed behind her. âSheâs here.â
Authorâs Notes, Chapter 21
This is where the aurora FULLY became the Nexus concept from Star Trek: Generations, the ideal world you could live in where all your wishes were fulfilled. Those who have seen the terrible movie will recognize this as Picardâs first dream sequence in the Nexus.
So why was this so convoluted? Why did I think this was a good idea at all? Because up until that point, I had no idea how to have Anna fall in love with Elsa, believe it or not. I couldnât figure out a rational way at the time for canon!Anna to fall in love with canon!Elsa. So I borrowed that plot device and essentially had a different variation of the first half of the story, but instead of being in a different timeline, I put Anna in a different reality entirely, one in which everyone she loved was alive.
Did it work? Not⊠really. And that was partly because I was adhering too closely to the Nexus concept itself, and partly because⊠it was wholly unnecessary. It was at this point where I KNEW these extra chapters were in serious trouble - this was WAY too convoluted.
What ended up happening in the real story was much cleaner. Anna wandered the fields, got her thoughts together, and realized that literally everything in canon Frozen 1 - thirteen years of pursuing her sister - was basically a declaration of love of every kind, and expanding that love into romantic love wouldnât be a stretch for her. We know this to be true; the entire Elsanna fandom is basically built on that premise. The GIFs alone of Anna biting her lip as Elsa snuggles next to her in F2 are all you really need.
Sometimes the simplest answer is the best one.
Wish Iâd realized THAT sooner.
Directorâs Cut, Chapter 22: Break These Chains
Anna spun around to see Elsa - her Elsa, she remembered fully - and a woman sheâd never seen before. Elderly, with long white flowing hair and an outfit that looked like it was made from animal skins and other natural materials. âElsa! Oh my God, are you all right?â she gasped, running to her sister and embracing her, nearly knocking her over.
âIâm fine, Anna. I- how did you get here? Yelana-â Elsa indicated the woman next to her with a small gesture, â-said that only people with powers, with magical gifts could escape what they were shown by⊠whatever this place is. We could see what you were seeing, but then it all vanished. What- how did you do that?â
âI⊠I donât know, Elsa. One minute I was thinking about what Christmas gift Iâd gotten you, and the next minute, I found myself over against the wall.â She wrinkled her brow as she wiped the tears from her eyes, a thought occurring to her. âWait, you could see whatever that was? That⊠dream, I guess?â
âIt was no dream, Miss Anna,â Yelana offered, extending a hand to Annaâs arm. âWhat you saw there⊠what you lived there was the embodiment of what you thought a perfect life was. That is what this place shows you: everything you could ever want.â
âWho are you?â
Yelana explained all that sheâd told Elsa previously; the storm, the destruction of Arendelle, her powers.
Anna sat down on the featureless floor, mulling over everything Yelana had said, plus what she now knew of this place. âThat⊠thatâs why Kristoff did what he did, wasnât it? To get back to⊠whatever his perfect world was.â Fresh tears pricked Annaâs eyes. âIt⊠it felt so real, until it wasnât. You-â she looked at her sister, â-you didnât have any powers, because your powers were what caused us to be separated for so long. And Mama and Papa were aliveâŠâ
Elsa sat down next to her sister, head in her hands as her own eyes watered. Sheâd come to terms with her powers and her magic as something that was part of her, something that was neither good nor bad. Her chest ached and tightened at the thought of Annaâs perfect world omitting those powers. âWhat if thatâs how Anna felt all the time?â she wondered to herself. âDoes she think my powers have taken away her chance at an ideal life?â She sniffled, her nose running from her tears.
âOh God Elsa, Iâm sorry. I didnât mean it to sound like that. I love you, I love your magic, I love everything about you. I would never want you to be different than who you are,â Anna urged as she hugged her sister close. âYou know that, right?â
Anna was about to continue when Yelana nodded at her. âIâll leave you two to discuss this matter. It seems quite⊠serious.â The elder walked across the room to what looked like a square hole in the wall, almost like a door; ice appeared to seal it up behind her.
Elsa watched Yelana leave before she looked her sister in the eye. âAnd yet⊠Anna, when you dreamed of the perfect life for yourself, you dreamed about me⊠without them.â
âI⊠I guess, maybe, I donât know how any of this works, but for Mama and Papa to be alive and for you and me to have grown up together so close⊠maybe thatâs how this magic constructed the story?â Anna offered a tentative smile to her sister. âIâve always wondered what it would have been like if we had really grown up together, instead of me talking to you through a door for thirteen years. Somehow, this⊠place let me see what that was.â
Annaâs eyes softened at the memories sheâd experienced, of growing up with Elsa, of them sharing toys and playing together, doing each otherâs hair, having sleepovers. âItâs so weird. I know for a fact what happened in our real life, but⊠this dream, or these memories, or whatever this is⊠it feels real too. I- I wish you could have felt it too, Elsa.â
âI⊠saw it, or enough of it, through your eyes. It⊠it was nice to see Mama and Papa like that. I hadnât seen themâŠâ Elsa stopped herself, remembering that she hadnât shown Anna the videos on the smartphone sheâd brought back from the future yet. She cleared her throat as she looked down at the hem of her dress, idly rubbing it between her fingers before glancing at the doorway, still covered in ice. âAnyway⊠about that other thing.â
âOther thing?â
âWho you were engaged to.â
Anna gasped. âYou saw that! I mean, oh, well, I guess you saw everything, huh? Yeah, um, I donât know why it was showing us engaged. Thatâs really weird, you know?â she blurted out, covering with a nervous laugh.
âAnna, you were engaged to me.â
âI⊠I know I was.â Anna wrapped her arms around her middle. âIâve been thinking⊠a lot, really, since you came back. SinceâŠâ
âSince I kissed you.â
Anna nodded. âYes, since that. I wasnât disgusted by it. Iâm still not disgusted by it. Maybe itâs because we were apart for so long that Iâll take whatever I can get as long as it means keeping you in my life, Elsa.â She subconsciously looked down at her left hand, almost expecting there to be a crocus and snowflake ring on her finger, and her heart fell a little when there wasnât. Though faded since she found her way out, she could still remember the memories of the fictional world she was in.
Elsa swallowed, her throat bobbing. âAh⊠uh, so does⊠does that mean that you feel towards me⊠the way I feel towards you?â She stared intently into Annaâs teal eyes, her eyes scanning back and forth, looking for any indication that Anna might even feel just a fraction towards her what she felt for Anna.
âWe never did talk about it again, did we? After your trip to your Ice Palace.â
Elsa shook her head. âNo⊠we got so busy with⊠you know, figuring out how a magical storm was going to destroy Arendelle.â She looked at her own left hand, remembering the ring sheâd worn in the future.
âWell⊠I guess we have time now.â
âSo.â
âSo.â
âThe part of me in that⊠world? Is that what weâre calling it?â Anna asked, scratching her head briefly, âwas very much in love with you romantically. We had engagement rings and everything. It was⊠it was really nice.â
Elsa sighed. âHow do we know this place didnât⊠I donât know, force you to feel that way?â She desperately wanted Annaâs love, but of her own free will, not because some magical phenomenon had forced it on her.
Anna waited for a long moment, staring at her toes on the textureless grey floor. âBecause⊠because I was starting to feel that way before all this happened, Elsa. I- I went for a walk up in the northern hills the other day, just thinking about all this, and I ran into Olaf-â
âOh no,â Elsa lamented, cradling her head with her hands. âWhat did he say?â
âIt- he said something that was actually really insightful. We were talking kissing and warm hugs and all that, and he said, more or less, you and I do plenty of things that only people in love do.â The little snowmanâs guileless observations came rushing back to Anna now that she was free from the influence of the storm. He wasnât wrong; they hugged and kissed and touched each other far more than other siblings she knew. Gerda had once joked that they hugged each other like they hadnât seen each other for years, when theyâd only been apart a few minutes.
âHeâs⊠not wrong.â She took a deep breath. âAnd at least he wasnât ranting about animals that poop squares. So⊠what the⊠storm showed you, then? It wasnât something that it imposed on you?â
Anna shook her head as she slowly inched closer to her sister. âIt⊠my feelings, they were already there. I guess I just⊠a perfect life meant having everyone I love so close to me, as close as possible. And that meant being engaged to you.â
âI⊠I know what that feels like. I was married to that other Anna. It⊠well, I told you how we were, ahem, together.â Elsaâs cheeks colored at the memories as she broke eye contact with her sister, unable to hold her gaze while she thought about how sheâd been intimate with the other Anna.
âSo⊠where does that leave us?â
âDo⊠do you still love me⊠like that, Anna?â
Anna drew her knees to her chest, hugging them. âI- part of me still does, yes. And if Iâm being totally honest, itâs not a small part of me. But⊠can we do that? I mean, are we allowed to be like that?â
âAnna⊠where we are right now, itâs kind of like purgatory or the afterlife. Arendelle is gone. Everyone who could possibly care is gone, either trapped in the same place you were, or out here. Thereâs no one left to judge who we are, or who we choose to love.â Elsa pulled Anna closer, an arm around her shoulder as they sat together. âIf you want to love me - if you want to be in love with me - then you should. It doesnât matter where we areâŠâ
Anna looked up into Elsaâs eyes with a smile. ââŠif youâre there with me. All right. I do, Elsa. I do want to be in love with you. And I think I might have for⊠well, for longer than I thought.â She exhaled, the weight of confessing off her shoulders and dashed a quick peck on her sisterâs cheek. â So⊠what happens next?â
âI⊠I donât know. Arendelle is gone. Weâre in here. Yelana said she left here once, but everything was ashes, so⊠I donât know what to do,â Elsa murmured, touching her cheek with her fingers where Anna had kissed it.
At that moment, the ice barrier over the door to the chamber fragmented, icy crystals hovering in the air. Yelana walked back in slowly, looking at the sisters with a grim expression on her face. âWhile you were talking, I walked around the halls of this place. My powers permit me to see beyond here, andâŠâ the elderâs face contorted, her brow scrunched as the corners of her mouth fell, ââŠthere is nothing left. Not just of Arendelle, but nothing. Somehow the storm grew to proportions beyond imagination, and it has consumed everything.â
âWhat do you mean, everything?â Anna asked, her eyes wide. âLike⊠everything, everything?â
Yelana nodded slowly. âYes. There is nothing to go back to. Not Arendelle, not the Enchanted Forest, not the world. All is lost.â She knelt on the ground, touching the crystals on the floor. âI had hoped to find some way to leave here with my people, so that we could start anew somewhere else. Instead, it looks as though I shall be their watcher in their eternal slumber here.â
âWait, so weâre just stuck here forever?â Anna yelled, pacing in a large circle around the room. âDoes that mean weâre going to starve to death?â
âYou have no need of food or drink here, Miss Anna. You have no actual body to feed, nothing to satiate, no fatigue to rest from. Time has no meaning here, nor do pleasures and pains of the flesh.â
Anna stopped in her tracks. âWait, you said you can leave though, right?â
âI did. But there is nowhere to leave to.â
âElsa, are you thinking what Iâm thinking?â
Elsaâs head tilt and slight parting of her lips indicated she wasnât. âI⊠no, I have no idea what youâre thinking, Anna.â
âIf time has no meaning here, then can we leave in a different time? Like, go back in time?â
A long moment of silence hung in the air.
âI⊠have never thought to try, Miss Anna,â Yelana replied sheepishly, forcing herself not to rub her hand down her face at her own lack of foresight.
Anna clapped her hands together. âOkay, so⊠letâs do this. If you can help us leave here at a specific time, maybe we can prevent this from happening at all, right?â She looked to Elsa, who still appeared deeply confused, her eyebrows knitted together. âElsa, if we can go back to the start of all this, we can stop Kristoff from ever bringing the storm to Arendelle!â
Yelana slowly began to walk the perimeter of the room. âI suppose it wouldnât hurt to try. It certainly would be better than being trapped in here, in this room for eternity. Take my hands, both of you, and think of the period of time you have in mind.â
Both sisters looked at each other, nodded, then grabbed a hold of Yelenaâs hands and thought of the morning after Elsa arrived from her jaunt to another world. White light clouded their vision, as though they were soaring through the clouds, and then they found themselves in the Palace gardens.
They turned to see Yelana already beginning to fade. âWhatâs happening?â Anna panicked, about to reach out to grab the woman.
âI am already here in corporeal form in this time, so I cannot stay, Miss Anna. I wish you luck in saving us all.â The elder offered a slight smile before vanishing completely.
Elsa pulled her sister to a small alcove to the side. âRemember that we are still here somewhere, our other selves. We should try to avoid being seen.â
âRight. Well, itâs morning so we should definitely avoid the dining room. In fact,â she said, looking at the town squareâs giant clock tower, âyou should be coming down towards the dining room right now.â
Elsa smiled. âThat will create plenty of distraction. So, where to?â
Annaâs smile faded. âLetâs head for the stables.â
Authorâs Notes: Chapter 22
See what I mean? The mythos and mechanics of the aurora were so overcomplicated that it took an entire chapter just for them to figure out that they loved each other romantically and how to leave.
So I bailed out. I stopped writing the story ENTIRELY for a little while and just ran on my treadmill (which is where I think about stories Iâm writing) for a couple of weeks, trying to figure out how to dig myself out of the hole I was in. In the end, I confessed to our friends and colleagues in Elsanna Shenanigans Discord that I basically had to throw out all these chapters and start almost from scratch.
Directorâs Cut, Chapter 23: Fresh Start
Given that I bailed out, what was supposed to happen in the final chapter of this original story? I never wrote the ending, but I had a pile of notes about what I was going to write. They went something like thisâŠ
They would have gone back in time to the moment in which Kristoff re-emerged from his version of the aurora.
At that point, heâd still be disoriented, trying to figure out what was happening, and Anna, knowing the future, would confront him.
Heâd see his opportunity to try to recapture what was lost, and dropped to one knee to propose on the spot - and at that point, Elsa would stun him with an ice blast to the back of the head.
Once incapacitated, the sisters would haul him to the trolls. Pabbie, having some level of farseer vision, would understand what theyâre trying to do and basically do a repeat of the lore from Frozen 1, except this time, Kristoff would be the one whose memories were changed. Pabbie would have erased any knowledge he had of Annaâs existence whatsoever.
Elsa would have also dissolved Olaf; the little bugger canât keep his mouth shut for anything and would have sought out Kristoff and asked him about Anna, so Olaf would have vanished as well. That would have protected the timeline and the integrity of the canon universe; while Anna was sad at Olafâs loss, the world as they knew it would have been saved.
The story would have ended with the majority of what eventually happened in the âofficialâ chapter 18, where Elsa would have shown Anna the videos of their parents, and ended with an interspersing of both realityâs weddings - future!Elsa and future!Annaâs wedding and canon Elsa and Annaâs wedding, then finish off with what is now Epilogue 2.
But as you can tell⊠a bunch of things were wrong with this approach. First, itâs completely out of character for Elsa and Anna to ambush anyone, particularly Anna. So that was going to be a problem. The magic with the trolls made sense, but the ending left the aurora as an even bigger, more confusing mystery. And killing off Olaf was gratuitous, which also would not have been a great ending. The blood sacrifice earlier was already gratuitous and a total change in tone from the story.
In the end, the revised version of Switching Places, without the entire Kristoff/aurora subplot, was much stronger. The second epilogue, with Queen Elsanna, was always the endgame and in fact, Iâd written that epilogue before I had even gotten to chapter 8. The first epilogue wasnât on the books to be written, but so many of you had asked what happened with future!Elsa and future!Anna after chapter 12 that I needed to wrap up that thread and give you some closure.
So⊠thank you to EVERYONE who read, reviewed, liked, kudosâed, commented, and shared. Thank you to Jelly, who was my beta for consistency for a lot of the first version of the story. Thank you to everyone in Elsanna Shenanigans who is a constant source of encouragement to write and create.
And most of all, thank YOU for reading this. I hope you can join us over in the Elsanna Shenanigans Discord!
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