Of Conversations and Sleds

There were little snippets of conversations that Anna overheard when Elsa conversed with one of her government officials, a trader, or even the servants. Usually, these overheard snippets of conversations were pretty boring, related to concerns about national treaties and the state of Arendelle and her citizens. Anna's brain soon forgot most of what she had overheard, remembering only the snatches of debates that aroused her curiosity. It was from these snatches of paragraphs that Anna knew some Arendelle residents remained cautious and sceptical of their queen, but Elsa didn't seem too concerned about them—not for now, anyway. There were too few of them to feel like a threat—not yet, anyway.

For the most part, these glimpses into discussions entered into by the queen with her council entered one of Anna's ears and soon slipped out the other, completely forgotten by the end of the day. That is, until she overhead a word that gave her pause, leaning in ever so slightly to the door to listen in: "sled".

Sled?

Anna had a brief flashback to when she had rode on Kristoff's old sled, which had ended up exploding at the bottom of a snowy ravine much to the mountain man's grief and dismay. At least it had enjoyed one last, thrilling ride, chased by wolves, before it came to its untimely end.

Does this have something to do with Kristoff?

She listened with intense concentration, trying to latch on to Elsa's voice amongst the general mumbles of her other officials inside.

"Anna detailed it to me very well," Elsa said now, "Including his lute which had been lost along with the sled."

They're talking about Kristoff's sled, but why? Wait, wait. Is…is she going to…

There was a grumble or two amongst those conversing with her.

"You have better things to worry about than a sled, Your Majesty," counselled one man in a deep voice. "It is unfortunate, but how will it help Arendelle?"

"I have made a promise to Anna that we will replace his sled. After all, she did promise him she would replace it, and I will see that this is done."

Outside, Anna clapped her hands over her mouth, resisting squealing out aloud in excitement.

She's going to replace his sled!

The talkers' voices hushed to a volume quiet enough that she could no longer pick out what anyone—including Elsa—said. Nevertheless, that did not stop the swell of overwhelming giddiness and excitement in her soul.

Kristoff will be so thrilled!

She allowed herself to fall into a deep daydream of the day she would break the news to the ice harvester, imagining the look on his face when he saw the new sled. Anna was positive that Elsa would see to it that the sled was as close to the original as possible. After all, even back then when she'd known Kristoff for only a few hours, Anna could tell how attached he had been to his old sled.

The door opened, jolting her out of her reverie with a yelp and start, only to meet the eyes of her sister who had peeped out of her door.

"Oh, Anna, it's you," Elsa greeted with a small smile, "You needed something?"

"Elsa!"

With no reservations, Anna pulled Elsa out of the doorway and grabbed her in a bear hug, almost lifting her feet off the floor.

"Elsa, you are too amazing!"

Anna let go of Elsa, who stared at Anna in bewildered surprise.

"I couldn't help but overhear your conversation," Anna explained, "I mean, I shouldn't have been eavesdropping, but Elsa. A new sled for Kristoff! He's going to be so excited!"

Anna expected Elsa to scold her for eavesdropping on a conversation, but to her surprise, her older sister laughed instead.

"It wasn't supposed to happen like that," she said, "I wanted it to be a surprise, for you and Kristoff."

Anna bounced on the balls of her feet. "Oh, Elsa, it's a wonderful surprise! I can't wait to tell him!"

Now Elsa shook her head, putting a finger to her own lips. "Anna, if you don't mind, I would like this to be kept a secret from Kristoff until it is finished."

Anna's face fell a little. "Are you sure?"

"It will take a while to commission, and I don't want him getting his hopes up too much if he knows about it too soon. It will make the surprise that much more rewarding if we keep it between us until then."

Anna considered Elsa's explanation, mulling it over in her head. She ached to just run off to Kristoff right now—even if he were in the mountains with his other colleagues—and blabber everything she knew about his commissioned sled right there and then. Yet, she could see Elsa's point of view in keeping it a secret until it was fully ready to be gifted to Kristoff. Anna wasn't sure if she would have simply exploded from the excitement by then, but if Elsa wanted her to wait until it was done, she would promise to keep it a secret, for the sake of both her sister and Kristoff.

Anna grinned at Elsa, not bothering to hide her excitement. "Okay Elsa, it's a deal! We'll both keep it a secret between us! I promise!"

"Thanks, Anna," Elsa said, "But maybe you could help a little yourself? You probably know and remember a lot more about Kristoff's sled and lute than I do."

"Me? Help?" Anna echoed, breathless from excitement. "Of course I'll help you!"

"Excellent." Elsa opened the door again. "Come in, Anna, and let's get started."

"This will be the best present ever for Kristoff," Anna whispered, "You're so sweet to do this, Elsa, thank you so much."

I can't wait to show it to Kristoff and Sven, Anna reflected, the smile never leaving her face, They will be so surprised and happy to have a new sled—and commissioned by Elsa—the queen herself.