Hello, my friends, how are you? Hard to believe that this is my 20th story here on FF. I've come so far since I first joined and I owe my success to all of you. You have all been so supportive and I just can't thank you enough. Anyway, here's a new story for you. It's a fluffy sisterly Elsanna one-shot. I know I promised another multi-chap of Anna and Elsa's extended family, but then this one popped into my head and I decided to go with it. Hope you enjoy, and please review! DISCLAIMER: I do not own Frozen or any of its characters.
It was a beautiful day in Arendelle. The sun was shining, the sky was a clear, forget-me-not blue, and the air was warm. Villagers both young and old could be seen dancing around in the streets. Even though it had been almost a week since the Great Thaw, the people of Arendelle were still celebrating the return of summer and the permanent re-opening of the castle gates. But more importantly, they were celebrating the return of their queen and princess and their restored sisterly bond. It had been a hard and sad thirteen years while the gates had been closed but now that they were open, the kingdom was happy again.
But no one was happier than Anna. She was so happy to be reunited with her sister that for the past week, she had been bouncing around the castle in high spirits. It certainly helped that Elsa spent almost every evening with her. The day after the Great Thaw, Anna had insisted that Elsa take evenings off so they could spend time together as sisters. Surprisingly, Elsa had agreed wholeheartedly. Her desire to reconnect with her sister was stronger than Anna's, especially seeing as it was her fault that they had been separated in the first place.
Anna was excited at the prospect of getting to know her sister again and after Elsa's positive response, she started making a mental list of all the things she wanted to do, everything she and Elsa had missed out on for the past thirteen years. But when evening came and Elsa had asked her what she had wanted to do, Anna's thoughts came crashing to a halt.
She decided that all the suggestions she had come up with in her head would be too much for Elsa too soon so instead, she suggested that they just talk. They hadn't had much chance to talk, as Elsa had been busy smoothing over the events of the frozen summer and settling into her role as queen. She wanted to talk to Elsa about her magic, but she knew that it would be a touchy subject with her, especially being the day after the Great Thaw, and the last thing she wanted to do was get her sister upset again.
After settling themselves down in the library, Anna decided to detail her journey up to the North Mountain. She told of how she had left Hans in charge of things while she was away and then her experience with the sudden change in weather. She mentioned how lucky she was to have found Wandering Oaken's Trading Post and Sauna.
When she got to the part about meeting Kristoff, Elsa interrupted her. "Wait," she said, leaning forward. "Kristoff was the young man with you in my ice palace?"
"Yeah," said Anna, barely missing a beat. "And guess what? He's an ice harvester, too. He loves ice. He was so in awe of your ice palace, he was almost crying. Anyway, I was able to make a deal with him to take me up the North Mountain. But on the way up, we were ambushed by wolves and he crashed his sled when we jumped over a ravine."
"What?! You jumped over a ravine?!"
"Yeah, but we weren't hurt or anything. We landed on the soft snow on the other side. Kristoff was really upset about his sled and was reluctant to take me any further, but I promised him a new sled and he eventually gave in. It wasn't long after that we met Olaf and he showed us the rest of the way to your ice palace." Anna paused, not sure how to go on, as the next bit was a touchy subject, but she decided to just plow through and get it over with. "After you, um, kicked us out, my hair started turning white, so Kristoff took me to his troll family to see if they could help."
"Wait, his family are trolls?"
"Yeah, they adopted him or something when he was really young," said Anna. "Anyway, they weren't able to help me, but Grand Pabbie, the leader of the trolls, I'm guessing, told us of another way that might help me, and that was when he told me that the only way to thaw my heart was through an act of true love. Kristoff carried me back to the castle on Sven and then left me at the gates. I thought Hans would be the one to save me, but I turned out to be wrong about him. He locked me in the cold library and left me to die. Luckily, Olaf came and saved me and he helped me realize that maybe Kristoff was the one who could save me. So I headed out onto the frozen fjord to find him. But your blizzard was raging and it was hard to see where I was going. I could barely walk due to the high wind and the fact that I was freezing to death. But then suddenly, your blizzard cleared and I saw Kristoff across the ice not far from me. I started towards him, but then I heard Hans unsheathing his sword, so I turned away from him towards you and, well, you know the rest," she mumbled.
By the end of Anna's tale, Elsa had tears in her eyes. "Oh, Anna," she whispered. She went over to her and wrapped her in a hug. "I'm so, so sorry for everything you went through, all because of me."
"You don't need to be sorry about anything," Anna said, smiling. "I've already forgiven you."
"Thanks," said Elsa, wiping the tears from her eyes. "So, this Kristoff. Tell me about him." She sat back in her chair and crossed her arms.
"There's not much to tell, apart from what I've already told you," said Anna, shrugging. She started fiddling with one of her braids.
"You say he's an ice harvester?" Elsa asked.
"Yeah," said Anna.
"But he needs a sled?"
"Well, yeah, I mean, that's how he carts his ice around," said Anna, as though it were obvious.
"I think I might be able to help with that," said Elsa, smiling.
"Really?" said Anna, lighting up. "Oh Elsa, he would love that!"
"Just don't tell him about it yet," said Elsa. "Keep this between the two of us."
"Oh, I won't, I promise," said Anna, fairly bouncing with excitement. "I actually wanted it to be a surprise, too."
"One more thing," said Elsa. "Does Kristoff live anywhere else, besides with his troll family?"
"I don't know," said Anna truthfully. "He never mentioned living anywhere else and I never thought to ask him. Hey! Maybe we could invite him to live here!"
"You don't think he'll be too overwhelmed by that, do you?" Elsa asked skeptically. "I mean, he hardly knows you and he hasn't even met me yet."
"Well, maybe we could invite him to the castle for dinner one evening and he could meet you then?" Anna suggested.
Elsa thought for a minute. "The idea has merit," she said. "But why don't we wait on dinner for now? We don't want to get him uptight and nervous on meeting the queen, especially since she can create snow and ice. Besides, I need to work on replacing his sled, anyway."
"Okay, I guess that's fair," Anna conceded, though a bit reluctantly. "But I just can't wait for him to meet you!"
"I myself am intrigued by this mysterious ice man," said Elsa. She winked at Anna, and the sisters giggled.
It took a few days, but Elsa was finally able to commission a new sled for Kristoff. When she told Anna about it, Anna squealed with delight. Elsa had also decided that tonight would be a perfect night to invite Kristoff for dinner and offer him a place in their home.
After Anna had presented Kristoff with his new sled, she mentioned that Elsa wanted to invite him for dinner. At first, Kristoff balked at the idea, not sure of what he would do or say in front of the queen. But Anna reassured him that Elsa was actually a lot like him, reserved and a little withdrawn. It took a bit more persuasion, but Kristoff finally agreed.
Dinner that night turned out to be an enjoyable affair, though a bit awkward, mostly on Elsa and Kristoff's part. Elsa was a little uncomfortable around people other than her sister, and Kristoff, well, was uncomfortable around people in general. But luckily, Anna knew how to fill the silence with her almost constant chatter. After her and Anna's conversation from a few nights ago, Elsa had had an extra room in the family wing cleaned and aired out. She had told Anna about it and now Anna was telling Kristoff.
"I really hope you like it, it's one of the best rooms in the castle," she was saying in between bites of her roast lamb. "Well, of course, it's in the family wing and after what you did for me, I kind of consider you family and family should have the best rooms available. I hope you consider us family, too, if not now, then maybe sometime in the near future. I know it may seem a little uncomfortable at first because you haven't been around many people for much of your life, but I haven't really, either, you know. But now that the gates are open again, we'll be able to have more visitors and see more people, and, well, we wouldn't be alone, anyway, because we all have each other now, and it's a nice thing, you know?" She paused to take a sip of cider and then continued. "I hope that Sven likes where he's staying, too, I mean, our stables have some of the freshest hay in Arendelle and not one of our horses has gone without the best feed and care…."
Kristoff looked helplessly at Elsa, who just smiled and shrugged her shoulders, as if she was saying, "You'll get used to it".
By the time Anna finally finished talking, it was after nine and everyone was tired, Anna mostly from all her almost non-stop talking.
As Kristoff had a long day of ice harvesting ahead of him, he decided to turn in early, so Anna showed him to his new room. It was a short distance from her own, just down the hall and around the corner. It had been one of the rarely-used guest rooms while Anna and Elsa were growing up. It had a wide window overlooking the royal gardens and the walls were papered in varying shades of green and blue. Before she left him to retire to her own room, Kristoff gave her a light kiss on her cheek, causing her to blush. She was grateful for the shadowy hallway, for she was sure her face had turned as red as her hair.
But instead of returning to her own room, she found herself directing her steps to Elsa's room. When she got there, the door was closed, and she wasn't sure if she could just go right in or if she should knock first. She decided it was safer to knock.
Knock knock knock-knock knock. "Elsa, you in there?" she asked.
"Come in, Anna," came Elsa's voice.
Anna turned the handle and stepped in. She stopped just over the threshold, feeling a little uncomfortable. Elsa was standing by her bed, dressed in a sheer, ice-blue nightgown.
"You can come in a little farther, Anna," she said, smiling at her.
Anna shuffled forward a few more steps and stopped again. This time, Elsa knew why. "Oh," she said. "You've never seen my room, have you? Well, it's not much different than your room, really, except that it's blue instead of pink." She took her dress from where it had been laying on her bed and hung it neatly in her wardrobe. She turned back around to find that Anna was still standing in the same place as before. "Was there something you needed, Anna?" she asked.
Anna started fiddling with her braids again, a nervous habit of hers. "Well," she began hesitantly. "I just wanted to thank you for letting me invite Kristoff to dinner and offering him a place in our home."
"Well, it was the least I could do after you told me what he did for you," said Elsa, smiling at her.
Anna didn't say anything. She just kept fiddling with her braids.
"Anna, what's wrong?" Elsa asked, her happy countenance turning to one of worry and concern.
Still, Anna said nothing. Then suddenly, she rushed at her sister and hugged her so tightly Elsa feared her bones might crack.
"Oh, Elsa," she said, her voice breaking and her body shaking with sobs. "I've missed you so much!"
"What, since earlier this evening?" Elsa asked, pulling away and smiling at her again. Anna shook her head, and Elsa suddenly understood what she meant. She put her arms around her and hugged her back. "Oh, Anna, I've missed you, too."
"Can – can you promise me something?" Anna asked, pulling away and sniffling.
"Anything," said Elsa, smiling again and wiping Anna's tears away with her thumbs.
"Promise me that you'll never leave me longer than you have to," said Anna.
"Oh, Anna, you know I won't," said Elsa, taking her sister's hands in hers. "Never again."
"Promise me anyway," said Anna firmly.
"All right, I promise," said Elsa.
"Thanks, Elsa," said Anna, starting to sniffle again. "I love you."
"I love you, too, silly," said Elsa, smiling and brushing a strand of hair out of Anna's face. Anna smiled back. "Was there anything else you wanted to talk about?"
"No, I think I'll just go to bed," said Anna, yawning. She hadn't realized until now just how tired she actually was. "'Night, El."
"Good night, Anna," said Elsa. She pulled back the covers to get in bed. She heard Anna's feet shuffle to the door and then stop. She looked up and saw that Anna had stopped in the doorway. Her back was to the room.
"Why did you do it?"
Her voice was so quiet, Elsa almost didn't hear her. "What?" she asked.
"Why did you do it?" Anna repeated, turning back around. "Lock yourself away? I mean, I know now that it was because of your magic, but why did you decide to hide it?"
Elsa didn't say anything, but she didn't have to. Anna already knew the answer.
"It wasn't your decision, was it?" she asked quietly.
Elsa shook her head. "It was mostly Papa's," she answered. "After the accident—"
"What accident?" Anna interrupted. "Elsa, is there something I don't know?"
Elsa had been afraid of this. She knew that the subject would come up eventually, but she had tried to avoid it as long as she could. But now that it was out, she figured that now was as good a time as any to tell Anna the truth.
"Yes," said Elsa. "There was an accident with my magic. Before the accident, before Grand Pabbie altered your memories, you knew about my magic. It used to bring you such joy.
"Anyway, one night, you woke me up to build a snowman. I turned the ballroom into a winter wonderland for you. We built a snowman and slid down slides that I had made. But then, while you were jumping around the room on pillars of snow, I slipped on the ice and instead of catching you, I hit you in the head with my magic.
"After the accident, after Grand Pabbie altered your memories, Papa decided that the best thing for me, for everyone, was to hide myself away and learn to control my magic. Being a young girl, and not wanting to hurt anyone else, I went along with it."
There was silence, then Anna said, "You isolated yourself to protect me?"
"In a way, yes," Elsa answered. "But as you now know, hiding my magic had never worked, especially when I became scared or upset."
"But you had never hurt me until that night, right?" Anna asked.
"No," said Elsa, the thought suddenly dawning on her.
"Which means that you weren't scared of it until that night," Anna continued. "Elsa, now I understand." She ran over to her sister and took her hands. "The accident happened because you were scared that you wouldn't be able to catch me. That's when your magic started to spiral out of your control."
There was silence again. Then Elsa said, "Anna, I'm so sorry for all the pain I put you through these last thirteen years. I'm sorry for shutting you out. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you when Mama and Papa died. I was so scared and so out of control that—" She broke off when Anna hugged her tight again.
"It's okay, Elsa," she whispered. "I've already forgiven you."
Elsa didn't say anything, but held Anna as tightly as she held her. Eventually, Anna broke the hug.
"You know, when we were little, I guess even with my altered memories, I had always looked up to you," she said.
"Is that so?" said Elsa, smiling at her.
"Well, yeah, I mean, isn't that what younger sisters are supposed to do?" Anna asked. "Look up to their older sisters?"
"I suppose," Elsa agreed. "But why me? I'm nothing special."
"Yes, you are," Anna insisted. "You're special because you're my sister."
Elsa didn't have anything to say to that. Knowing she wasn't going to be interrupted, Anna continued. "When I was little, I wanted to be just like you. You're so intelligent, patient, kind, peaceful. I'm almost none of those things. You always enjoyed your lessons; I hated them. When you settled to a certain task, you would always see it through to the end. I would give up after a while. And you know me when it comes to peace and quiet. Even now, I can't stay still to save my life. You, on the other hand, could sit in silence for an hour or more.
"Don't you see?" Anna finished. "You have so many qualities that I will never have, and I admire that."
"Oh, Anna," said Elsa, her voice shaking. "I know you think you know me, but the truth is, I'm the one who has always looked up to you."
"Me?" Anna asked, surprised. "Why?"
"I admire so much about you," Elsa answered. "Your free-spiritedness, your effervescence, your carefree attitude, your ability to light up whatever room you walk into. But do you know what I admire most about you?"
Anna shook her head.
"Your selflessness," Elsa replied. "You never give up on those you love, even when everyone else thinks it's a lost cause. It was through your stubbornness and determination that we were finally able to reunite as sisters again."
Anna sniffed. She was on the verge of tears again. "I didn't know I meant that much to you, Elsa," she said, her throat thick.
Elsa reached out a hand and lovingly touched her sister's face. "Anna, you are the most important person in the world to me," she said, smiling. "I want to be just like you someday."
Now Anna was definitely crying. Tears of joy and happiness were streaming down her face. "Oh, Elsa," she said, wrapping her sister in the tightest hug she had ever given. "You don't know how much that means to me. I'm so glad we're sisters again."
"Me, too, Anna," said Elsa, squeezing her back. "Me, too."
And the two sisters hugged as if they would never let go.
I love writing sisterly one-shots for these two. They're so cute when they're being sisterly. :)
Thanks for reading! :)
