Chapter Two

Within an hour, Kristoff found himself outside the door to Anna's chamber. Ingrid, the midwife, had arrived shortly before, and she was currently examining Anna to ensure that everything was in good order. He'd excused himself so Anna could be properly tended to, and he was now patiently waiting to be allowed back in.

It was quite the contrast to the way he'd behaved when Anna was preparing to deliver Petra four years before. That night, he'd anxiously paced the corridor, desperate for news and panicking because he wasn't permitted to be in the room. Men, as per tradition, weren't allowed in the birthing chamber, but after much grovelling on his part and an eventual blessing from both Anna and Ingrid, he'd been welcomed into the room so long as he swore to abide by some rules. Kristoff was only there for the birth itself then, but this time, he planned on being there for everything; he'd be right by Anna's side through all of her pains.

He was still nervous, of course, but he felt better knowing he wouldn't have to fight his way into the chamber this time around. Yes, it seemed early, and yes, things were moving fast, but it helped to know he could at least hold Anna's hand through it all. Kristoff wondered if it would end up being more of an aid to his own nerves than hers.

"Sir?"

Ingrid stepped out of the room and approached Kristoff with small steps, hands tucked in the pockets of her starch white apron.

"How is she?"

"The Princess is doing well," Ingrid confirmed. "Her pains are accelerating a bit quicker than normal, but they are patterned and last for the typical amount of time. So far, everything appears to be fine."

"So far?" Kristoff queried. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I did not say it to alarm you, Sir, but one can never be too cautious when a mother's pains begin early."

"So she is early," Kristoff sighed. He'd been hoping they'd simply counted wrong.

Ingrid nodded. "Judging by her size, I'd say three weeks at the very least."

"Is... is that bad?"

"Hopefully not. We just need to be more vigilant, that's all. But remember, Sir, that things can go wrong even when the child is carried to term. Just because a mother is early does not guarantee peril for herself or the child, so there's no need to panic. Perhaps the child has merely inherited its mother's impatience."

"Okay," he breathed, though it came out more shaky than he would have liked. He knew Ingrid was just trying to lighten the mood and help him relax, but his heart was thundering against his chest so hard that he could almost hear it echoing in his ears. If anything happened to Anna...

"Sir, I promise, the Princess is well, and as far as I can tell, so is the child. Do you intend to be with her as you were for Petra's birth?"

"Yes," Kristoff responded in haste. "Though I was hoping I could be with her for all of it this time around?"

"The Princess expressed the same wish," Ingrid said with a smile. "However, the same rules still apply, Sir. As I told you four years ago, childbirth is-"

"A women's event," Kristoff finished for her. "I know. I'll remain relaxed and stay quiet unless I'm spoken to. If told to leave by either you or Anna, I will do so, no questions asked. I'm not allowed to linger for long once the child is born because... I forgot why, actually."

"The afterbirth and the child's first nursing," Ingrid politely reminded him.

"Right, that. Anyway, I'll leave shortly after. Did I miss anything?"

"No, you got everything," she conceded with a smile. "Feel free to go right in. If her timing stays as is, she should be in a lull for now with no heavy pains. I must gather a few extra supplies, so I'll allow you two some privacy before I reenter."

"Thank you," Kristoff said sincerely. "For everything."

Ingrid bowed her head. "It's an honor, Sir. I will see you soon."

After they parted ways, Kristoff stepped into Anna's chamber and quietly closed the door behind him. She was sitting up in the colossal bed, back propped up against several regal pillows and legs tucked beneath the quilt for the time being. She was still wearing her cotton nightdress and was gingerly rubbing her belly through it. She smiled when she saw him walk in.

"Hello," she cooed.

"Hi."

Kristoff was relieved to hear her voice was normal rather the frightened, wavering mess it had been when he carried her to the room. A chair was placed beside the bed for him and he took it, reaching out to grab one of her free hands.

"How are you feeling?"

"Not too bad. The pains are... well, painful, but that's to be expected, of course."

"And... and your nerves?"

"Oh, much better now that Ingrid's here," Anna hummed. "I guess you could say I'm the normal amount of nervous now!"

"Me, too," Kristoff lied.

He tried to be positive like Anna and Ingrid, but there was a small bit of panic throbbing in the back of mind. When Anna first went through childbirth, of course he'd worried that something might go wrong, but that fear was a lot less subtle this time. Not only was the child early, but the fact remained that four years was an unusually a long time for two young, healthy people to conceive again. Even news of Anna's first pregnancy didn't come to the surface until well after their first wedding anniversary. What if something really was wrong?

Nonetheless, he pushed it aside. He had to be brave for Anna, be strong for Anna. He also reminded himself that Petra had been born safely and his wife made it through the ordeal with no issues at all.

But Anna was able to carry Petra to term, he thought. This one's early. What if... what if... oh, stop it. Just stop, will you?

"I wish Elsa was here," Anna murmured in a wistful tone. "She's going to be so upset once she comes home to a new niece without having been here for the birth!"

"Nephew," Kristoff cheekily corrected her with a grin; Anna rolled her eyes and laughed. "But in all fairness, she's had this trip planned for a while, and I doubt she expected this to happen so soon."

"I know, but I do like having- ARGH!"

Kristoff felt Anna's hand tightly grip his own as her pains resumed. Her face was bathed in crimson as she squeezed her eyes shut and began to take deep breaths as steadily as she could muster. Meanwhile, Kristoff helplessly rubbed his thumbs against her hand and whispered words of love to her, all in an attempt to be soothing; his actions didn't appear to work all that well.

"Oh," she gasped a minute later, reopening her eyes, "that was a strong one."

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. That one just came on rather suddenly quickly. I wasn't expecting it."

"Are... are things picking up?" Kristoff asked, holding his breath.

"Maybe, but it could have been a fluke. It happened a couple of times with Petra, too. Pains out of the pattern."

"Okay," he breathed. "Okay."

"But," she continued, "I do feel like this one's going to go a whole lot faster."

"Is that bad?"

"No way! Petra took forever. Such a slowpoke, that one. Trust me, the sooner this is over, the better I'll feel."

"Well, good. I want you feeling better. And I can't wait to meet our son."

"Daughter!" Anna chirped. She pulled his hand to her lips and softly kissed the back of it. "Thank you for being here with me."

Kristoff smiled as his insides melted into a warm, delightful puddle of affection for Anna. He slightly lifted himself off his chair so he could lean in and softly caress her lips.

"There's nowhere else I'd rather be," he murmured sincerely. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

"And this is all still so amazing, you know."

"What is?"

"Just... well, this." He reached his free hand across her so he could place it on her tummy, because heaven knew his opportunities to do so were dwindling with each passing moment. "We made this. It's incredible."

"Oh, don't get all sappy on me, Bjorgman. We've been through this already," Anna teased. She was giggling despite the inevitable softness emerging her eyes and pinkening of her cheeks. Kristoff knew she loved when he said sweet things like that.

"Hm, you're probably right," Kristoff played along. "I don't want our son coming out thinking his father is nothing but a hopeless romantic."

"Oh my gosh, will you stop?" she laughed. "You're making my tummy hurt!"

"That's his fault, not mine."

"Kristoff!"

Such repartee between them consumed much of the next few hours. Kristoff winced and held her hand when her pains returned, but during her lulls, he did everything he could to help her relax and feel comfortable. He joked with her and made her smile. It was all he could do, but it seemed to help. Even as the pains grew stronger and occurred on a more frequent basis, Anna remained calm and collected. Kristoff even caught Ingrid attempting to conceal a smile as Anna laughed; he saw that as a victory. He almost forgot about how worried he was.

The fear came spiraling back a couple of hours later. Out of nowhere, Anna's pains began to accelerate at a remarkable speed, and she complained that something didn't feel right. Kristoff tried to quell her concern by reassuring her the discomfort was normal and that he was right there to hold her hand until the end, but she insisted the sensation was different... and wrong.

It was nearly dawn when the time came for Anna to push. By that point, Marta and Bergitta, Ingrid's two assistants who had been present for Petra's birth, had arrived. While they bustled around the room, Kristoff remained at Anna's side, desperately trying to keep his nerves in check for his wife's sake. By this time, she was crying, sobbing in agony, continuously voicing that something wasn't right. He wanted to scream at Ingrid and her assistants, but he remembered the rules, and he didn't want to be ordered to leave.

In the end, it didn't matter. It felt like a kick to the groin when Ingrid declared he needed to step out into the corridor. All the air in his lungs vanished and his heart seemed to drop to the floor.

"Wh-what?" he asked.

"Sir, please," Ingrid insisted. "You need to leave."

"But why?"

He looked at Anna, fear bubbling within him at the sight of her eyes fluttering and her breath quickening, slowing, quickening, slowing... she didn't even seem to notice he was there anymore. Her grip on his hand had loosened. All that appeared to exist for her in that moment was the pain – horrible, excruciating pain that he could not ease nor take away no matter how much he wanted to.

"SIR!" Ingrid hollered. "This is urgent!"

It was the panic in Ingrid's voice that made him move, albeit reluctantly. Before stepping out of the room, however, he squeezed Anna's hand and leaned down toward her ear. He thought he heard Ingrid telling one of the assistants to escort him out, but he didn't care.

"They need me to leave for a while, okay?" he shakily whispered. "But I promise you, I'll be right back. I'll be just outside that door. I love you, Anna. Everything's going to be alright. I love you."

He kept telling her how much he loved her until he felt Bergitta's hand on his arm, tugging him toward the door.

"I'm sorry," she muttered, "but it's for the best. You'll understand later."

But Kristoff didn't want to understand later; he wanted to know now, right now, what was going on. What could be so bad that he needed to leave? In the few seconds it took Bergitta to guide him to the door, Kristoff attempted to process everything he heard Ingrid telling Marta.

Breeches? Why are they talking about breeches? he thought anxiously. This isn't the time for that! Try to turn what? What does she mean the heart rate's dropping? Anna's or the baby's? And oh, my god, why is there so much blood? There shouldn't be that much blood, should there?

Before Kristoff could hear any more, he'd been all but pushed by Bergitta into the corridor, and the door was shut in his panicked, tear-stained face; he hadn't even realized he'd begun crying. He dropped down on the floor directly across from Anna's room in a haze and stared at the door through blurry eyes, waiting for news.

Anna... he thought, running his fingers through his hair and clawing at his scalp. Anna... what's wrong? Please be okay. Please, please be okay...

Author's Note: Sorry... :/

All of the references to Petra's birth are detailed in my other story, In a Heartbeat. Thanks for reading!