A/N: Unlike my submissions for the previous Elsanna Week, which were a series of unconnected ficlets that I swear I'm still going to finish, my contribution to this week will be a 7 chapter story, with some time having passed between each part. I hope you'll enjoy my tale of our lovely lesbians as they spend their lives together. Stay strong, shippers.
Anna paced around the dressing room, biting her lip and furrowing her brow. She muttered to herself, constantly gesturing to nowhere in particular. Finally, she froze in place, throwing her hands in the air, shouting "I can't do this! I just can't do this!"
Kristoff gaped, sending her a concerned look. "Anna, you're not just going to make her arrive at an empty altar, are you?"
Anna rolled her eyes at him and huffed, "No, it's not that. I won't do that. Elsa's gonna get married so hard she won't know what hit her." Kristoff gave her a quizzical glance, deciding not to comment as she continued. "It's my stupid hair!" She flipped it, watching despairingly in the mirror as parts flew every which-way, settling into an untamed mess. "I can't get it into that fancy bun they did for the Melbourne Cup, it's not agreeing with anything stylish, and I can hardly get married in pigtails!"
Kristoff walked over to her, placing a supportive hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, worry wart. Your hair will be fine. Just leave it out. You'll have Elsa swooning down the aisle when she sees your luscious locks set free."
Looking at Kristoff as if he were insane, she stepped back, exasperated. "Have you seen what I'm wearing? Letting my hair run wild's not a good look with this getup." Demonstrating her point, she thrust her arms down, as if to remind him of her ivory suit. The jacket was embroidered with intricate snowflakes, a custom request to symbolise joining her life with the champion skater.
"You're wrong," Kristoff insisted flatly. He grabbed her by the shoulders, careful not to crumple her suit as he pulled her to the chair and sat her down. She begun to protest, but he moved a finger to her lips, shushing her; standing behind her, he focused on their reflections for a moment, tapping a finger on his chin, deep in thought.
Anna puffed impatiently, a lock of hair rising and falling with her breath. "Are you gonna stand there all day looking at my bird's nest, or are you gonna put those styling skills to good use?" She whined after a little while.
Like a lightbulb switching on, Kristoff grinned. "Right! Got it. Okay, close your eyes, I've got this."
"But," Anna said, pouting, "how will I know what you're doing?"
"That's the point," Kristoff replied. "I don't want you to fret. Now, no peeking."
Reluctantly, Anna screwed her eyes shut. "Just don't gimmie a mohawk or something." She muttered warningly, hearing Kristoff chuckle as he started combing her hair. He combed it for a while before she heard him spraying something, probably some kind of hairspray.
After a surprisingly short amount of time, Kristoff smirked. "Open up."
"Already?" Anna queried, a little concerned, refusing to open her eyes. "You can't be done with it yet."
Kristoff chuckled. "You underestimate me so much. Have a little faith."
Anna held her breath, slowly cracking open one eye, then the other. She was stunned by the sight before her. "I think you're right," she breathed, impressed by her friend's work. "Twenty bucks she'll pass out before she makes it to me?"
Meanwhile, in the dressing room across the hall, Elsa was on the edge of her seat, focused heavily on her makeup. She paid immense attention to each precise stroke as she applied her blush. Gerda watched her niece with great appreciation for her attention to detail.
Aggie had a smile of excitement plastered to her face, cooing, "Look at you, getting all ready for your big day." She sighed happily. "You two will be the sweetest couple the sporting world has ever seen."
"We're already the sweetest couple in the sporting world," Elsa joked as her lips twitched into a confident smirk.
Aggie waved her hand around. "Details, dear, details. Sweetest married couple."
Gerda smiled as Elsa placed her brush down. "Sweetie, we're your bridesmaids, shouldn't we be doing that for you?"
Elsa chuckled. "You already helped me into this dress. I think you two need a break. This is the most complicated thing I've ever managed to get into."
"Well," Aggie giggled, "I doubt Anna will have trouble getting you out of it." Both Elsa and Gerda spun to face her, stunned. "Oh, come on," she chimed. "Have you seen how many straps she has to deal with around those horses? Your dress will hardly-"
"I'm not going to have my wedding night activities compared to horses." Elsa shook her head before turning back to the mirror. She began applying her eye shadow, only a little distracted by the prospect of the night ahead.
"I can't do this! I just can't do this!"
Hearing Anna's outburst, Gerda and Aggie both turned to Elsa, concerned. Elsa simply smiled, making sure her makeup was even. "Do you think she'll…?" Gerda couldn't even finish her sentence.
Elsa moved her eyes to meet Gerda's reflection. "It's her hair."
Aggie and Gerda shared a look. "You're not at all worried?" Aggie was wringing her hands.
"Nope," Elsa spoke confidently. "Wait for it… wait for it…"
The three of them paused, keeping their ears out for any sign of Anna's voice.
"It's my stupid hair!"
Elsa leaned back, a snarky I told you so written across her features.
"Well then." Gerda shrugged, declaring "I guess nobody knows her better than you."
"You're right," Elsa smiled, dreamily. "And I know she loves me, hates her hair, and wouldn't dash off into the woods on our wedding day." Leaning back toward the vanity, she started on her eyeliner. "You two should know better than to doubt my wife-to-be." Aggie and Gerda shared an apologetic look. "Did you really think the woman who proposed to me would freak out and leave?"
Aggie breathed uncomfortably. "Well, no, but-"
Elsa cut her off with snorty chortle. "You know I'm not serious." She shook the mascara tube as that dreamy smile returned to her face. "I just can't believe today's really the day! If it weren't for the dress, I could be getting ready to go on the ice." Her bridesmaids smiled warmly as she continued.
"Anna's my everything. Even if I slip up a performance, she makes me feel like I've aced it. She could come home covered in dust, hay and horse hair every day for fifty years, and I'd still love her as much as I do now."
Just as Elsa put the mascara brush back in its tube, there was a knock at the door; a man announced, "The bride's ready for the… other bride. Time for the wedding march."
Elsa steadied herself, pulling down her veil. "This is it."
The next morning, Anna and Elsa were on the couch of their honeymoon suite, hunched over the messy pile of newspapers and sporting magazines gracing the coffee table. Anna had insisted on buying them check out how their marriage was portrayed by various news sources. They had provided some good humour, to say the least.
Elsa shook her head. "I can't believe News Express. What was the title again, "'Olympic Gold Medalist Elsa Valkoinen Marries Girlfriend?' They didn't even mention your name!"
"Well, at least Riding Words has my back," Anna beamed. "'Top Breeder Anna Hart Seals the Deal with Pro Skater.' Now look who gets left out." Her eyes shined with pride as she stuck out her tongue.
Shooting her a mischievous side-smile, Elsa picked up Ice United. "I'm not so sure you've won just yet, my dear wife." She displayed the front cover, photo of the pair smiling happily at the altar gracing the gloss cover. "'Gold Bearing Skater Elsa Valkoinen Marries Horse Rider.'"
"Horse rider?" Anna balled her fists. "Horse rider?! I'm not even a pro rider! I just… That's not even my job!"
Chuckling, Elsa raised a hand to cover her mouth as Anna snatched the magazine off her. "Well, it's not like being versed in the horsing community is Ice United's job."
Anna furrowed her brow as she flipped through the magazine, finding the two page spread covering their wedding day. The main display was a snap of their wedding kiss, with a few other smaller photos of Elsa skating her signature performance at the recent Olympics. "Let's see what this hack wrote… 'A joyous ceremony was held this weekend as the recent Gold Medal figure skater, Elsa Valkoinen, married her long-term girlfriend, esteemed horse rider Anna Hart.'"
"Well, at least they had the kindness to say you're an esteemed horse rider."
"Most of this isn't even about our marriage! They're still talking about your Olympic win!" She squinted, hunting for the journalist's name. "'Sven Stephens.' Do you know this guy?"
Groaning, Elsa pinched the bridge of her nose. "Oh my God. Oh my God."
"What is it?"
Elsa let out a sudden burst of laugher. "Oh my God, Anna, I'm so sorry." Anna cocked her head to the side in confusion. "Sven's kind of a friend. He's been following my career since before I was in the public eye, sometimes shows up at the rink to take snaps of my practice. Oh, Anna, this is my fault."
"What's your fault?"
"He said you were a horse rider. When he asks about you, I call you 'my little horse rider.' I can't believe he actually put that in the article."
Balling her fists, Anna looked like she could strangle her new wife at any second. The moment passed, and Anna smiled dreamily. "Your little horse rider, eh? You're too cute."
Elsa ruffled her red mane. "You're the cute one, little horse rider."
"Okay, okay, since this argument never goes anywhere, let's see what else we've got… Oh, The Equine Examiner! This one's gonna be good."
Elsa grabbed it before Anna had a chance. "I'm not even on the cover of this one." Elsa pouted. "It's just you and that horse."
"Hey!" Anna raised a pointed finger at her. "I'll have you know that horse is on his way to becoming a historical champion!"
Elsa sighed, followed by a light chuckle. She admired the well-bred white horse by Anna's side. "Well, I don't doubt that. Let's see, 'Breeder of Champions Bonds Her Life with Olympic Skater.' Well, they didn't mention either of our names in this one."
Anna leaned back. "We're probably mentioned in the article itself."
"Ah, there!" Elsa found the spread, donned with another photo of their wedding kiss. "It opens with… 'Anna Hart, profound champion breeder, scored a hot babe this-' What?! A hot babe?" It was Anna's turn to burst into laughter. She looked like she was going to choke. Elsa eyed the writer's name with suspicion. "Anna… do you know Sitron Westergard?"
"Yes!" she coughed through her laughing fit. "Wow, I didn't think he'd actually do it…"
Elsa shot her a stern glance. "Anna…"
Anna waved her off. "It was a stupid bet. I dared him to call you that in the wedding article. I never thought he'd actually do it." She beamed with pride. "He owes me a 4 page spread on Winter's Heart."
"Well," Elsa shrugged. "I suppose you've got to promote your new stock somehow."
"That's the horsin' life." Anna stretched. "We got any of these left?"
Elsa checked the pile, eyes widening with horror as she saw the lone remaining magazine. "Oh no…"
"What's the- oh, oh no…"
They both stared in shock at the copy of Hot Hot Gossip. "Anna, why did you even get this one?"
"It's… bound to be… fun…" She giggled nervously.
Elsa sighed as she watched Anna grab the horrid rag, trembling. "Actors, actors, singer, actor, band… ah, here we go." Their marriage was covered on a half-page article, showing various angles of their kiss. "Ahem, 'Sporty chicks Elsa Valkoinen and Anna Hart shared a lackluster kiss at their wedding. We would have liked to see some hot les action this weekend, or some tongue, at least! What do you think? Share your thoughts, hothotgoss #valkoinenhartkiss.' Oh, I'd like to share my thoughts, alright…"
Elsa sighed. "Well, it's not like we'd expect anything better." She leaned over to see the journalist who seemed to be expecting some kind of make-out session at a formal wedding. "Hans Westergard. Wait, Westergard?"
Anna chuckled. "He's Sitron's brother. Used to work for Equine, but his articles were sub-par. Boss told him he'd only be fit for Hot Hot. Nobody thought he'd actually take the job. He's been kind of mad at me ever since."
"Why you?"
"No reason, really, just anger by association, I guess."
"Well," Elsa beamed, "At least we've got some good ones in here. I think I'll frame the Ice United spread."
"Yeah, you just want more reason to brag about your Olympic stint."
"Or," Elsa kissed her forehead, "Maybe I just want to put 'esteemed horse rider' on proud display."
"Well… in that case…" Anna smirked mischievously. "I'm gonna frame the Equine Examiner article. My wonderful achievement of snagging a hot babe has to be immortalized."
Having finished their morning fun of reading about themselves, Anna and Elsa simply sat on the couch, holding hands. Anna slumped her head on Elsa's shoulder. After a while, Elsa started to get up, but Anna said "Don't you dare break snuggle time."
Elsa simply giggled, sat back and put an arm around Anna's shoulders. "I love you, my little horse rider."
"I love you too, my hot babe."
A/N: Due to time restrictions, I had to choose between the magazine scene and the wedding scene itself. I chose the morning after for some fun fluff. Last part inspired by a Korrasami comic where they joke about their wedding articles. You can be sure my submissions each day won't be this long, hahah! From here onward, I'll write shorter drabbles and probably come back to flesh it out as a full fic later. Enjoy this lovely Elsanna week, shippers!
