Title: Sandbox
Sum: [Soldier!Anna] Anna always wanted to be just like her father…
Disclaimer: I do not own Frozen or its associated characters… I'm just borrowing them for a bit of fun.
Rating: PG-13
Characters/Pairings: [Elsanna]; Anna, Elsa
Warnings: military AU.
Notes: When I finished the Soldier!Elsa fic last night, I knew that I want to do one where Anna was the military half of the relationship. I mean, Elsa's cool as the marine, but Anna? She seems to fit the bill a little better. She wants to protect her kingdom and her sister in the movie, and she's willing to do whatever it takes to see that everything is safe and alright in the end—and she's a bit of a tomboy. So, soldier!Anna? Hell yes.

-1-

The sandbox was a slightly warm where they were sitting. The play sand that had been bought from the store the same day that her father and mother had paid for the box to put it in, and it was safe and soft to play in with no problems—and little Anna had been excited to show her new toy to her best friend, Elsa. Anna could only remember ever playing with Elsa. Sure, her mother's friends had kids, but they were older and 'didn't like playing with babies' as they had no trouble teasing them whenever her mother invited them over for the afternoon. But Anna didn't care what they said, Elsa was her friend, and that was enough for her.

"Elsa?" She called softly as she finished filling one of the buckets with the play sand. Looking over to her blonde friend, she noticed that the girl was using the cup of water she had brought from inside to make the sand wet, and she was sculpting little handheld balls and setting them aside.

"Yes, Anna?" She asked, not looking up from her activity. Anna placed the plastic shovel down in the sand and laid back, looking up at the clear blue sky. Hearing the movement, Elsa looked up and over at the younger girl. "What's wrong?" Anna sighed, before she turns her eyes to look at her friend.

"Will we always be friends?" She'd heard a few horror stories from some of the older children in the cul-de-sac, about friends that split apart whenever they started school. It sounded horrible to Anna. And if that was what happened, she never wanted to go to 'school'… whatever that was. The five year old waited earnestly for the answer.

"Of course, Anna…" Elsa said with an unsure look on her face. "What made you ask?" Anna lifted herself into a sitting position, and looked down at her hands as she answered.

"Hans was telling me about 'school' and how… once you get there, you don't have your friends anymore… and…" She paused. "I don't want to lose you Elsa! You're my best friend." She heard a giggle and looked up at the blonde in surprise. "What's so funny, Elsa?" Calming down her giggles, Elsa answered:

"You don't lose your friends in Anna… you just make more. We won't be in the same grade… or class, once you start. So you'll make new friends. But… you'll still have me." Elsa smiled. Anna grinned at this and wiggled her toes in the sand with a giggle. "Better?"

"Yea, thanks Elsa!" Anna said, before she paused again. "Y'know… I can't wait for school…" She paused, waiting to see if Elsa would saying anything. "Cause then I can get it over and done with… and start a job… and be just like Daddy! Fighting bad guys and protecting girls… and kids… maybe even save a few damsels in… dis… dis… dress!" Stumbling over the last word, she watched Elsa as she finished. The blonde smiled at her younger friend.

"Well, I can't wait for you to do that. I'm sure there are a lot of damsels in distress that need saving." Anna nodded and went back to filling the bucket she had in front of her. And just as she was done filling it, something hit her on her shoulder. Turning sharply, she watched as Elsa snickered while picking up another one of her wet sand balls, ready to throw it.

"Ooh! I'll get you for that Elsa!" Elsa squealed as Anna picked up the bucket and swung it, causing the sand to swing out of the bucket and onto the older girl. The result was a sandy Elsa chasing Anna around the fenced in backyard, all worries of school and the future gone from their minds.

-2-

It'd been almost thirteen years since that day. Elsa and Anna's families had packed up and moved several times, and they were luckily enough to land in the same city for Anna's four years of high school. Of course, Elsa and Anna had only shared the school for two years, since Elsa was two and a half years older than the redhead. But it was a fun two years. The two had grown closer.

Their first kiss together had been shared under the mistletoe during Christmas of Anna's junior year in high school. Elsa was back from university for the break and had spent the morning with her parents and the afternoon with Anna. It had been a memorable day, Anna hadn't believed how much better her relationship with Elsa could have gotten.

It had been a rocky road. After the kiss, they'd decided to take time to figure things out (Elsa wasn't entirely sure if she liked Anna romantically); and the blonde continued on in college as a single woman. Anna had held her through a few bad break-ups, one of which was the same kid that had terrorized Anna as a child, the auburn-haired prick of an officer's son: Hans. Afterwards, Elsa decided that maybe dating wasn't for her. Anna respected her wishes, but continued to call and text constantly throughout the rest of her junior and senior years. And then finally, Senior Prom.

"Anna? Are you sure?" The blonde asked through the video call. "I'm sure there are plenty of boys that would love to take you to your prom… don't… don't you think you should go with one of them?" Anna smiled at the cute look of nervousness on the blonde's face.

"I want to take you, Elsa. I don't want to go with a boy." She paused. "I want to pick you up in a limo, take you to dinner… and then to the dance afterwards." Then a feeling of insecurity flooded Anna's body. "Unless… you don't… want to go?" She looked down at her hands, suddenly embarrassed at having ask her best friend (and crush) to her Senior Prom. "You know what? It was a stupid idea… let's forget I ever asked okay?" Anna looked up at Elsa and noticed that the blonde still wasn't talking. "So… how were your classes today?"

"Anna…"

"C'mon! Tell me how hot your English professor is… or how… how Hans was once again shut down by that hot blonde Spanish teacher!" Anna said with a forced grin. "Anything! I'm dying to know how college life is." Elsa sighed and then her lips formed a smile.

"Well, you are right. Hans was once again shut down by the Spanish professor. He doesn't seem to get that her girlfriend doesn't like how hands-y he's getting." Elsa said with a chuckle, while Anna laughed. "And… my English professor isn't hot.. .he's like… 80 years old and no longer has any hair." She said with a smirk. "And I'm pretty sure he's married, so hot or not? Definitely a no on that one."

"But I though old men did it for you Elsa." Anna said with a laugh, and Elsa snorted before they both dissolved into laughter. The conversation continued for a few more minutes like this, before Elsa asked Anna how her schooling was going. "Well, I've got straight A's as far as I know. I won't be Valedictorian… I think Punzy has that one… but…" She paused. "The Marines have already accepted me…"

"What?"

"Yea… I start basic about a month after graduation." Anna said with a hint of excitement. "Dad wasn't all too pleased, saying that he didn't spend all this time in the Marine Corps for his only child to do exactly what he's doing. But… I can tell he's proud of me… that he's glad I'm doing something that I want to do." Anna said with a nod.

"Anna—"

"Anyway… it's getting late… Elsa… I love you."

"Love you t—"

Call has ended.

"Anna…" Elsa moved to find her phone quickly, tossing books and binders, her book bag, her pants from the day before. Finally, she located the phone her parents had bought her as a graduation present and quickly opened up the conversation she'd been having with Anna earlier in her text log. She sent off a quick text: Of course I'll go to prom with you… but I'm wearing a dress… I don't care what you say.

A few minutes later there was a smiley face with an added: You could show up in a potato sack and you would still be the most beautiful girl there. Elsa felt her face redden before she put the phone down. And she fell asleep a few hours later with visions of Anna picking her up in a tux and a limo floating through her mind.

-3-

They'd been told that the air craft hangar would open at 1700 hours that night, for activities and food for the families of the soldiers returning from Afghanistan that night. Elsa had shown up and parked in the parking lot at 1630 (430pm) and waited for the gates to open. She didn't call anyone to come with her—not Kristoff, Olaf, Rapunzel… nobody. She just didn't want them to see her as vulnerable as she felt right now. The loveable red goof had been gone for the better part of a year. They'd talked as much as they could with email and phone calls, but the internet out there was spotty at best and their video calls weren't as clear as Elsa wanted them to be. So although Elsa loved staring at Anna's face as they spoke, they'd both decided that maybe just talking on the phone was better—they're calls weren't cut off quite as much and they got a little more privacy from the other men and women out there.

But she'd still missed Anna more than she'd missed anyone before. Even her mother whenever she was deployed during her childhood. There was just a difference between her mother being gone for six months at a time, and the love of her life—the other half of her heart—being gone for almost a year. So, she'd sat by herself in the hangar, away from the families and the service members that were there to supervise the whole thing. There'd been a camera crew that had shown up shortly after the hangar was opened, but Elsa ignored them. Whenever they tried to approach her, she would conveniently wind up missing. She didn't want to talk to anyone, she wanted to suffer in silence and by herself. What… what if Anna isn't on the helicopter?... what if they left her in Afghanistan and just didn't tell me?! She worried.

And then finally, as it reached closer to 2200 (10pm) that night, the hangar doors to the flight line opened up. And the sounds of helicopters flying in a landing overtook their ears. They watched as a small fleet landed on the tarmac, and the blades spinning overhead started to slow until they stopped. Then, after a few silent minutes, the men and women in their flight suits and fatigues began to filter from the helicopters and make their way to the open hangar. The families were all standing just inside the hangar like the MPs had instructed while the camera crew filmed the reunions of soldier and family. When the first man in uniform reunited with his wife, all hell seemed to break loose. Children ran out of the hangar into the fray to search for their parent, wives and husbands continued to search the faces of those still coming in—some ran out to meet them halfway.

And Elsa waited. In her skinny jeans and ice blue top, and flight jacket that Anna had conveniently left at home for her wife to use; the blonde waited. And she watched every face, and noticed that none of them were Anna. Not a single one. And the last of the men and women had moved from the aircraft, no one was left. Elsa deflated, a feeling of dread and sorrow stretching over her. She's… she's gone. She didn't come back… She thought. They just decided not to tell me… that she's still over there… Then she began to worry. What if… what if she's not coming back? What if something happened… and they just didn't tell me? Because… because we're not a traditional married couple… or because… because… Tear began to come to her eyes and she felt them began to pour down her cheeks. "Anna…" She sobbed out. Leaning against the side of the hangar door, she slow sank into a crouch. The other couples had started to move inside the hangar, needing to collect the sea bags and other such items from another room in the air craft hangar—ignoring the sobbing woman as they walked.

"Miss?" She heard. But she didn't move. "Miss? What's wrong? Did something happen?" It was one of the MPs. Elsa merely moved her hand from her face to turn and look up at the man. "Is everything alright?" Elsa cleared her tears then, wiping her face, and she stood suddenly.

"Yes… everything's fine." She said with a small shake in her voice. The blonde just wanted to go home and curl up in her bed, and pretend that Anna was coming home to tomorrow… She started to move from her spot when she noticed a shadowed figure out of the corner of her eye. They were running, sprinting really, down the flight line. From what Elsa could see, the person was in a tanned flight suit with a helmet still on. And it was a few minutes before she noticed that the person ran just like… just like Anna did. "Anna?" Elsa moved quickly and raced to out of the hangar to meet the younger woman out on the tarmac, shaking off the MPs hand as he tried to stop her. "Anna!" She cried out.

"Elsa!" She heard in return. Only a few more feet, Elsa… she's right there. She came back! Their lips met in a passionate kiss. Elsa poured all of her love into the kiss, feeling the same want from her partner. They'd both missed each other. And they couldn't wait to get back to their lives together. "Oh my god, Elsa! I'm so sorry! I got caught up…"

"…you snagged on something in the cock pit… didn't you…?" Elsa accused, bringing their lips together in another kiss, holding onto Anna as tightly as she could. "I don't care. I'm just glad you're back!" Anna laughed as she kissed her again, picking the older woman up as she did so and spinning them around.

"And I'm glad to be back!" Anna responded once she set the blonde back down. "Now… let's go get my shit… and go home. I need a shower." Elsa laughed out at this, as she took Anna's hand and led the woman into the hangar. She ignored the camera crew as the reporter tried to approach them… but Anna did not. "Hey! You're hindering my progress here… I'd like to get my bag so I can get home and show my wife just how much I missed her!" She called out to the reporter that kept trying to get their attention. The woman with the microphone blushed while the man behind the camera snickered. "Good. Now enjoy your evening, ma'am." Anna finished, never one to leave without being respectful.

"…Anna…"

"Yes, Elsa?"

"I love you… you dork."

"I love you too."

-x-

Author's Note: Okay! Second military AU. Um… a few things for some people that don't know terminology:

Fatigues: military clothing, usually refers to the camouflage uniforms
MP: military police
sea bag: it's just a long bag that is tied at one end, you see these a lot in movies, it hold like a month's worth or possibly more, of clothes and such. And most, if not all, of the ones in use now have straps for easier carrying.

And I think that's it.

Lol…and if anybody gets the 'sandbox' thing, kudos.

As always, hope you enjoyed it.

Chezi Out