Stomping feet made their way down the castle halls, noisily alerting the royal staff of trouble. Their heads all turned as the source of the loud footsteps walked past. Their eyes followed until it sharply turned the corner.
"Something's wrong with the Princess." Mumbled a young servant girl.
"Must be that boy, again." Chimed a maid carrying a load of stacked towels.
Their assumptions weren't far off. Indeed her problems involved a certain ice harvester, however, this time, it was much bigger than that.
Ana didn't quite know how to place this specific emotion. It wasn't quite anger, and it wasn't quite sadness. It most definitely was not happiness, that much she knew. Her head was so filled with thoughts of the situation at hand, that it really didn't matter. She knew that going into this in such a frenzy was bound to end badly, but she couldn't talk herself out of it. This needed to happen, and it needed to happen now.
It couldn't be avoided any longer. This couldn't go on forever. Not like last time.
Slim fingers balled into a fist, hovering in front of The Queen's bedroom door. There was no going back now. Her knuckles quickly rapped against the wood, her signature knock. Even being as flustered as she was, the old habit had stuck with her.
"So after two years, you're going to shut me out again?"
There was no reply. No sign of life.
"Elsa, I know you're in there. You can't fool me."
More silence.
This was the most frustrating part of it all. She could handle being shunned out into the hall. She could handle talking to a wall. But she couldn't handle the noiselessness that followed after every sentence she spoke.
"If you're not going to talk with me, I'm going to talk at you. I don't care if the butler hears. I don't care if the maids hear. I don't care if the god damned king of Corona hears!" Her voice rose in volume, showing she was serious.
Anna hoped this tactic would work. Knowing her sisters policies of discretion, this would surely drive her out. Or better yet, let her in.
She heard a shuffle. Then, another. Yet still, no reply.
"Fine. If this is how you're going to be, than I have no other choice." She scowled, finding the courage to speak her mind.
"You can't hide from me, Elsa. I won't let you." She began. "You can ignore me at parties. You can skip meals to disregard me. You can turn every corner and act like I can't see you, but I can!"
Elsa's recent aversion of her sister obviously did not go unnoticed. Every place Anna seemed to be, she would be elsewhere. She had hoped she wouldn't be seen, turning sharp corners and taking new routes to her destinations. Anything to stay away from the young princess.
But Anna wasn't having it anymore. She wouldn't be ignored. Especially knowing the unfinished business of the night before.
On the other side of the door, the queen sat in silent contemplation. The events of the past week flashed through her head, causing her to relive it all again.
A knock came at the study's door. Most obviously giving away the identity of the person on the other side.
"Come in, Anna."
The heavy doors creaked as they opened, giving entrance to the princess. Slowly, she made her way to the large desk in the center of the room. Anna stood before it, the words she had rehearsed so well not seeming to come out.
The silence didn't go unnoticed. "Is there something wrong?" Elsa asked, a brow arching in question.
"Yes! I mean – no! I mean, well…" Anna sighed. There was no easy way to put this.
"Yes?" A questioning tone from her sister.
"It's just that…well you see…" She paused to gather herself. Trying to stay calm. After all, the last time she had done this, it almost ended with an ice age. "Kristoff and I are engaged, and, well… I'd like your blessing."
The quill in Elsa's hand stopped in its place. The temperature in the room dropped significantly. Tension built in the air. Silence hung heavy between the two.
Anna grew nervous. She had obviously upset the queen. There was no denying the unpleasantness that had so suddenly fallen upon them. Before the blonde had even muttered a word, she knew the answer.
"No." Her voice was stern. No hint of cowardice evident.
"But Elsa, you know Kristoff! He's a great guy. He's steady, and stable, and –"
"No."
Ice had begun to spread across the floor, creeping under the desk. Anna knew what this meant. Elsa was upset. Though not outwardly so, her powers gave her away.
"But you don't understand! He's great, really. Totally the kind of guy that would take care of me. He's understanding, and sweet, and yeah he's kind of stubborn sometimes, but he means well, and-"
"I SAID NO." Shouted the queen.
Anna flinched.
Steady snowfall descended from above. Every wall encasing itself in a heavy sheet of ice.
The outburst had surprised them both. Neither expected such an emotional eruption.
Elsa took a moment to regain her composure. Her face softened from the angry scowl it held before. She saw the pain on her sister's face. Her wide eyes staring at her in disbelief. It was an expression she hadn't seen in a long time.
Fear.
It ate her up inside, bubbling her anxiety to the surface. She had promised herself she would never hurt Anna again. Yet, here she was, watching as hot tears streamed down her sister's face.
"But…why?" Was the weak response.
"I think you should go."
A sudden sense of determination came over Anna. She wasn't going to let this go without an explanation. "No. I'm not leaving until you tell me why. I understand with Hans thing. He was a bad guy. But Kristoff's a good guy! You have no reason to disapprove."
"I have every reason to disapprove." Retorted the blonde, abruptly standing from her seat.
"No, you don't. I can't see anything wrong with this. You're being stubborn." Anna's fists balled by her side.
"Stop. Stop it. You need to go." Every word was a warning. A sign of an impending emotional collapse.
"Not without an answer! Why won't you approve? Why don't you want this?"
"Because I want you!"
Stunned silence overcame them. The words hung in the air, much like the icicles now draped dangerously above.
Elsa regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth. She shouldn't of said anything. She shouldn't have lost control. She should have concealed it.
But no matter what she should have done, she could never have stopped herself from feeling it.
Her head hung in shame. She felt completely disgusted with herself. She didn't ask for this. She didn't wake up one day and make a conscious decision to make these feelings – these unnatural, unholy feelings – spring to life inside of her. She had utterly humiliated herself, not only for the way she felt, but also for confessing them to her sister. She knew that the woman standing across from her had taken the words exactly as intended. There was no mistaking the things she said. There was no denying what she meant.
"I think you should go."
"But Elsa, wait, let me just – "
"GO!"
A giant wall of ice sprung up from the ground, separating the room into two, cutting Anna off from the queen's presence. She was stunned by the icy creation, but wasted no time as she pounded on the thick barrier. She wasn't going to leave this unfinished. She couldn't let it end with anger. But after causing her hands to bleed from the consistent banging, she could do nothing but slump to the ground and press her head to the ice. She couldn't see through the clouded barricade, but she so desperately wished she could, if only just to see if the woman on the other side was okay.
But she wasn't.
"You're going to listen what I have to say. You're not going to cut me off, and you're not going to throw me out. You can run from me, but you can't run from the truth. Whatever you decide to do after that, I'm okay with, but you have to hear me out, first." A sigh escaped Anna's lips. She closed her eyes to prepare herself for the words that were about to come out. "Back then, I mean with the whole isolation thing, I was alone. I had no one. I roamed these empty halls, talked to paintings, and tried not to let the loneliness bring me down. I was a happy kid, don't get me wrong, but it didn't change the fact that I was alone. For awhile, I thought I might be angry with you. You were my everything, and you shut me out. Still, I was here everyday. Everyday, Elsa. I never stopped. Somewhere in my heart I hoped that you would come out and play with me, but you never did."
Anna choked on her words, not even noticing that she had begun to cry. Bringing up the past had never hurt before. Not until it became the present.
"I broke it off, today. The whole engagement." She confessed. "I couldn't do it. I went to tell him earlier today, and I didn't even have to say anything. He knew. All he said was 'There's someone else, isn't there?'. I was speechless. Which, you know, is a weird thing for me, but anyway…" Wiping away her tears, she tried her best to continue. "He knew. And I knew. We both knew, I guess."
Anna was exhausted. All this was so tiring. Trying to explain things was more work than she had thought it would be. She'd hoped that she would be let it, and all this could be fixed. Instead, she stood outside a door that she knew all too well. She couldn't help but rest her forehead against it, further acknowledging her exhaustion.
"Elsa…you were my everything back then. And, you know what? You still are."
She sighed sadly. If her sister was going to shut her out again, then so be it. But she couldn't let her do that without making sure she knew exactly how she felt.
"I love you, Elsa."
Author's Note:
So, this happen to be my very first fanfiction! It's a two part story, so hopefully I'll get the next part in soon. I'm really excited about writing this, so I hope you're all enjoying it so far. Ending it on a cliffhanger was mean of me, but stick around and see what happens next!