"ELSA!" a loud voice shrieked in the dead quiet of the night.
Elsa's head jerked up from her work, immediately alert. Elsa got up so quickly from her seat at the desk that the chair turned over. She immediately went into a full sprint for Anna's room.
She nearly slammed a hole in the wall with the force in which she opened the door. She looked to Anna's position in her bed, a large, sobbing lump covered by the sheets. Elsa rushed to Anna's side.
"Anna, are you okay? Sunshine? Come out, okay?" Elsa prodded gently, staring concernedly at the shaking figure veiled by the layers of covers.
Elsa waited on her for a few moments, but then made the decision to crawl under the covers herself. She deducted that it would likely be easier to join Anna rather than force her to come out.
She clambered under the sheets and laid down beside her younger sister, wrapping her arms around her. To her surprise, Anna suddenly rolled in their embrace so that she had her head resting on Elsa's chest.
After Anna had finally calmed herself to a manageably reasonable level, Elsa made the decision to finally ask her sister what her nightmare was about.
"Do you… want to talk about it?" Elsa asked hesitantly. Anna took a deep breath in what Elsa could only assume was an attempt to calm herself.
"In a minute, give me a sec," Anna rasped so exceedingly quietly that Elsa had to really listen carefully to hear it.
"Okay, Love, that's fine," Elsa replied, kissing her forehead. She rested her chin on the top of Anna's head. After several beats, Elsa heard an intake of breath that, hopefully, was a cue that Anna was about to speak.
"You died," Anna whispered, sounding near breaking down once again. Elsa held her a bit tighter, despite her surprise. She couldn't help but reel in the wake of the simple statement's spontaneity. Elsa nuzzled her nose into Anna's red hair.
"I couldn't stop him from attacking you- I was frozen in place. I couldn't move at all and he," Anna trailed off, swallowing hard. Elsa could automatically infer the man in which her sister vaguely described.
Hans had plagued her poor baby sister's dreams for three months- every day since the Thaw- and quite frankly Elsa was utterly and absolutely sick of him. She once again wished that she had the bravery and strength to freeze him in his tracks and hang him by the rafters in the castle so that Anna would have the opportunity to see every day that he would never hurt her again.
But Anna would never approve of that. Despite the rather emphatic approach that she had given to earning a bit of revenge, Anna would never have anyone die. Not for her sake anyway.
However, whenever Anna overheard anyone speak ill of Elsa, she was quite a force to contend with. She would have whomever said it sprawling on the ground after a mean right hook or they'd be shaking in their boots at whatever threat she had made.
Elsa just wished Anna could see her own self-worth. Elsa could see the golden, beautiful, kind, caring heart that lied within Anna. Unfortunately, Anna herself couldn't. That was precisely the reason that Elsa wanted so badly to exact upon Hans the precise punishment he deserved.
One thing was for certain, though. If he ever hurt her sister again, whether emotionally or physically, Elsa would hunt him down and kill him without hesitation.
"He sliced right into you," Anna allowed a sob to escape with that. Elsa ground her teeth together. Anna truly wasn't helping with her urge to destroy that evil monster.
"Then I turned to ice… My last sight being you lying there in a heap," Anna whimpered, Elsa barely understanding the words since they were so muddled together from the tears.
So that was it. Elsa had been decapitated directly in front of Anna. That was the common recurring dream that Anna seemed to suffer nearly every night. The poor girl had to relive the horror of that terrifying nightmare once again.
Elsa pulled her closer, shushing her gently in an attempt to calm her. However, the method to truly put Anna at ease was a mystery to Elsa.
"Elsa… I'm terrified. One day, he's going to come back and kill you. He'll be stronger… smarter. And I won't be able to save you," Anna spoke, her voice barely audible. Elsa thought for a moment. What always calmed her in a time of fear? What could she do to ease Anna's distress?
It suddenly came to Elsa. Show Anna sheer proof of Elsa's livelihood. It was something that would perhaps calm the poor redhead.
"Listen," Elsa softly commanded, turning Anna's head so that the side of it would be resting on Elsa's chest. Anna quieted, her sniffles coming to an abrupt halt. "Listen to it," Elsa repeated just as quietly as before.
"It beats every day. Every day just for you, Sunshine," Elsa expressed to the younger woman heartfeltly.
"I hear it," Anna murmured, her eyes closed.
"Good," Elsa replied, pulling the sheets back just a bit so that they could finally have access to fresh air. It was beginning to feel a bit stuffy completely submerged under the covers. Elsa allowed her eyes to drift closed, believing that she would simply stay the rest of the night here with Anna. After all, that was what happened subsequently to every nightmare.
"Goodnight, Anna. Love you," Elsa whispered very quietly. After a few moments, they were both asleep soundly.
…
It had been a really long day. Elsa attempted to avoid yawning loudly and widely. After all, queens were never tired. Or at least, didn't show it. Especially when their younger sisters had no problem lecturing them about getting enough sleep.
Elsa peeked in Anna's room, checking to ensure that she was asleep. With a loving smile, Elsa strode in quietly and kissed her forehead.
Elsa returned to her initial position at the doorway. She gazed once more at the peaceful being on the bed.
"Goodnight, sweetheart," Elsa whispered, gently shutting the door behind her.
Elsa walked a little further down the hallway and entered her own room.
She sluggishly changed into her nightgown and wasted no time in snuggling into bed for a nice rest.
Elsa had just dozed off when she all of a sudden felt a heavy weight on top of her stomach. Elsa jerked awake and opened her eyes widely. She found herself staring into the adoring, teal blue eyes of her younger sister.
"Anna?" she squeaked.
"Yes, I'm glad you remember my name. Well, Elsa, it happens to be that the sky's awake. And you know what that means. I'm-"
"Awake. You're awake because the sky is, right?" Elsa interjected, closing her eyes and snuggling into the pillow a bit more.
"Yes. And before you so crudely and rudely interrupted me, I was going to say-"
"And we have to play?"
"Yeah, how'd you know?" Anna asked, a bit frustrated with Elsa's apparent ability to guess her every word.
"You repeated that particular set of words to me every night for three years. How could I forget?" Elsa rhetorically questioned, barely lifting her lids to roll her eyes.
"Ha, ha," Anna faked a laugh, quieting for a moment. Elsa decided that she'd take advantage of Anna's odd silence and use it to go to sleep.
"Elsaaaaa…" Anna pushed her shoulders, shaking her. "I want to play."
"Hmm. Anna 'm tired," Elsa mumbled incoherently. If Elsa would've had her eyes open, she would've caught the mischievous look Anna had on her face followed by her leaning down closer to her sister.
Elsa, with her eyes still shut, suddenly felt something warm and wet touch her face. Her eyes shot open and she wiped the dampness off. She glanced up at her sister who was wearing a grin that could rival the Cheshire cat.
"ANNA! Disgusting! Did you lick me?!" Elsa raised her voice in question, already knowing the answer. Anna stared into Elsa's eyes smirking widely.
"And if I did?"
"You better run, sister!" Elsa said, now more energetic than she had been all day. Anna squealed and sprang off of the bed as Elsa summoned a snowball bigger than Sven above her head.
Elsa raced down the corridor after her younger sister. It was typical of Anna to do something annoying and childish like licking her, but it still exasperated her a little. However, that just greater fueled her wish for payback.
As the two approached the staircase, Anna immediately hopped onto the railing, sliding down quickly. Elsa wasted no time in doing the same, keeping the large snowball elevated above her head the entire time. Once she finally hit the ground, Elsa immediately started searching for her baby sister.
For a moment Elsa was almost tempted to call Anna, but she thought better of it. If she made noise, she might reveal her position and give Anna the chance to run further. Also, there were quite a few servants that were asleep by now, and she didn't want to awaken them unnecessarily.
She suddenly heard footsteps and giggles. She quickly spun around to see her sister's braids disappear with a swish behind the door leading to the ballroom.
Elsa quickly padded over to the door, her bare feet not making a sound. Using one hand to balance the snowball in mid-air, Elsa quietly opened the door. She peeked inside, and didn't see Anna anywhere. She risked stepping past the doorway carefully. She looked around inquisitively with a bit of dread.
She suddenly heard a boom behind her. Elsa turned and saw her sister sprawled on the floor in a heap of red hair and nightclothes.
"Hello, sister," Elsa said, allowing her sisterly love to glow through her ultimately mischievous expression. "Fancy seeing you here," Elsa stated breezily. Anna suddenly gained a look of terror as Elsa took a step closer.
"I got a present for you," Elsa mentioned, wasting no time in creaming her sister with the giant snowball. When it landed on Anna's frame, Elsa could see nothing but her feet and her arms sticking out of the mountainous pile. Elsa giggled at the awkward sight of her little sister almost completely covered in snow.
Anna's head suddenly poked out and Elsa laughed heartily at the two blue eyes accentuated by the powdery snow sticking around them. The said blue eyes narrowed annoyedly at Elsa, simply making her laugh harder.
As Elsa doubled up over Anna's current situation, she failed to see the flying projectile speeding toward her.
To Anna's amazement, Elsa promptly fell on her behind. Both of them looked just as shocked as the other. Elsa being anything but graceful was a rare occurrence. As Elsa surveyed her position, she heard Anna sniggering.
"To think that I was supposedly the only clumsy one around here. Oh, how the tables have turned!" Anna exclaimed boisterously. Elsa shushed her and stood up, slightly rubbing her backside.
"That was a bit painful. Both physically and emotionally," Elsa mentioned offhandedly.
"A real pain in the butt, I'd say!" Anna squealed gleefully yet loudly.
"Anna, people are asleep!" Elsa whispered, her cheerful mood slightly dampened by her quite embarrassing fall.
"Ah, I probably should be a bit quieter then," Anna whispered a bit sheepishly.
"Yes, probably so," Elsa replied. Elsa shook her head exasperatedly yet fondly and suddenly realized just how tired she was. She sighed exhaustedly.
"Come on, Anna, I think we need to get to bed," Elsa quietly urged her sister, a hint of the yawn in her voice.
"But we're already up, let's build a snowman!" Anna happily suggested, grabbing her sister's cool hands.
"Anna, we really need to go to sleep. I don't know if you have anything to do tomorrow, but I know that I have a very important meeting to attend," Elsa replied, resisting Anna's tugs.
"Please?" Anna begged. Elsa looked away from Anna, knowing that it wouldn't be long before she would receive "The Look." It was the one Anna had used for years to convince anybody to do what she wanted.
And Elsa was determined not to fall for it, for out of the corner of her eye, she could barely see Anna's lip rolled out in a huge pout.
"Pwease?" Anna pleaded again, her speech altered slightly by the fact that her lip was poked out so far.
Elsa, knowing it would be her demise, finally gave in and looked at her sister.
Unsurprisingly, Anna was trying to pull off "The Look." As Anna's teal blue eyes watched her intently, Elsa could see that every fiber of her being was wishing and hoping.
Yet, something was different about this "The Look." Elsa furrowed her brow slightly studying her baby sister's expression.
Besides the usual playfulness, there was almost a tinge of fear lingering in it. Before Elsa could think better of it, she grabbed Anna's face in her hands to better observe her countenance.
Elsa could see the surprise on Anna's face, but she didn't stop. She puzzled over her little sister's fear.
Why would there be any fear when she was doing her usual begging? Was she afraid Elsa would get her in trouble? Elsa dismissed that idea, realizing that Anna really wasn't in fear of any punishment that she knew Elsa would never give her.
As Elsa dwelled on the thought more and more, she realized that it almost seemed as if Anna didn't want to go to bed.
Suddenly, it came to Elsa quite like a slap to the face: the nightmares.
"Anna, Sunshine, are you afraid of going to bed?" Elsa questioned carefully. She could see immediately that she had caught Anna off guard.
"No, why would you think that? That's just preposterous. That's as ridiculous as Olaf not liking warm hugs or Kristoff and Sven not being best friends or-" Anna clamped a hand over her mouth, presumably attempting to bring her rambling to a halt. It was certainly known to be a very common nervous habit of hers.
Elsa, rather than acknowledging this fact, chose to simply give the younger her own "The Look." Elsa's "The Look" was more of a no-nonsense, tell-me-the-truth, motherly one.
As she watched Anna squirm, she gently removed her hands from Anna's face to instead cross them in front of her.
Anna squirmed even more, and Elsa could tell the truth was almost out of her. So Elsa sealed the deal- she raised her eyebrow ever so slowly.
"Okay, fine, I don't want to go to bed," Anna admitted in a rather quick fashion. Anna's gaze rested on the floor somewhat shamefully. Elsa immediately removed her "The Look" off of her face and took her sister's hands.
"Why?" Elsa encouraged Anna's next sentence gently, staring earnestly into the younger woman's eyes.
"Because I don't want to have another nightmare," Anna murmured. Elsa sighed, her shoulders falling a bit as she pulled her sister close. Anna wasted no time in encircling her arms around her older sister's waist, laying her head over Elsa's steadily thumping heart.
Elsa took note of how her sister automatically relaxed into the embrace and seemed to be enamored by her heartbeat. She considered this fact solemnly for a moment, realizing that it could perhaps be a solution to Anna's issue.
"Anna, every day, I want you to listen to my heartbeat. I think it will help you to not have nightmares anymore."
"What if it doesn't work?" Anna inquired uncertainly. Elsa smiled affectionately down at her.
"Then we'll have sleepovers every night until you feel comfortable enough to go to your own bed," Elsa said in an attempt to soothe her. Anna looked up at Elsa her eyes sparkling.
"Really?" Anna asked, sounding quite like the small child that she used to be.
"Really really," Elsa confirmed. Anna tucked her head under Elsa's chin. Elsa smiled, sisterly adoration pouring out of her expression. Elsa's grin grew a little more at Anna's giant yawn.
Elsa closed her eyes for a moment, reveling in the feeling of her beloved sister comfortable in her arms. She didn't deserve this. She didn't deserve Anna. But she knew that she wouldn't know what to do without her.
Feeling Anna's weight lean more heavily into her, Elsa slipped her arm under Anna's knees, keeping her hand on Anna's back. She pushed the ballroom door open and began heading up the stairs.
Elsa had done this many times when the two siblings were younger. The only difference as of now was the fact that her sister was much, much bigger and not nearly as weightless.
After traveling approximately halfway up the stairs, Elsa stopped for a moment to take a break. Her arms felt a bit weak after hauling the one hundred fifteen pounds that was in their grasp. Elsa desperately hoped that she could carry her now all-grown sister up the rather long flight of stairs.
She then started to trudge up the stairs the rest of the way. Elsa was beginning to feel quite exhausted.
Once she finally made it to the top, she nearly collapsed right there. She couldn't help but reprimand herself, for she could've hurt Anna.
In her fatigued stupor, Elsa sat her sister gently on the deep blue sheets and tucked her in. Elsa shortly thereafter laid on the other side of the bed.
Just as she was comfy in her sheets, she felt a warm body press against hers. She opened one eye to see the redheaded girl snuggled against her. Elsa smiled and wrapped her arms around her sister. She shut her eyes for the last time that night and drifted off into unconsciousness.
…
Elsa neatly stacked the papers on her desk into a tidy pile. She immediately set back to work on the document she was constructing to present to the council.
Suddenly, the door whooshed open quickly. Elsa looked up, startled, and suddenly felt a head pressed to her chest.
Elsa moved her gaze downwards to see her little sister with her ear to Elsa's heart. She smiled softly, suddenly realizing the purpose of Anna's actions.
"Just checking," Anna said cheerfully, embracing Elsa tightly. Elsa returned it with just as much force.
"It'll always beat for you, Sunshine."