Thanks again for the faves and follows! You guys make me wanna keep writing! Last but not least, here's the final chapter of my second Frozen fanfic. Enjoy, and please review!
Chapter 4: We Only Have Each Other
Two weeks later...
The morning sun shone through the window of Anna's room, bathing the floor in rich, golden light and creeping across her bed. Anna laid fast asleep, her legs tangled in the sheets and her hair spread out across her pillow, the stray wisps on her face fluttering every time she breathed. Suddenly, there was an urgent rapping on the door, rousing her from her sleep.
"Princess Anna?" It was Kai.
"Yeah?" Anna said, in the middle of a big yawn.
"I hope I'm not disturbing you," he said uncertainly.
"No, no, no, you're not," Anna said, sitting up and stretching. "What is it?"
"You're needed downstairs in the entrance hall right away," Kai replied urgently.
"Kai, it's really early," Anna said, yawning again. "Can't it wait?"
"I'm sorry, your highness, it can't," Kai replied briskly. "The captain of the guards wishes to speak with you." He left, his footsteps receding down the hall.
Anna sighed and got out of bed. She went over to her wardrobe and picked out a casual, lightweight dress. She put it on, along with her white stockings and black shoes, brushed and braided her hair, and spritzed a little perfume on her neck before heading downstairs. At the top of the stairs leading down to the entrance hall, she met Elsa. Her platinum blonde hair was still in that coiled bun, and she was still wearing those same gloves she'd been wearing two weeks ago. They walked down the stairs side by side, each avoiding the other's eyes.
The captain of the guard was waiting for them at the foot of the stairs, along with Kai, Gerda, and a few other servants.
"Your highnesses," he said gravely, nodding at each of them in turn. Elsa returned the nod, but Anna, noticing the guard's tone, remained stock still.
"What's wrong?" she blurted before she could stop herself. She corrected herself. "I mean, what did you want to talk us about?"
"Well, your highness, it's about the king and queen, uh, your parents," the guard answered in that same grave tone. "There was a storm at sea and the vessel they were on was hit by a big wave and capsized." He paused, looking at each of them in turn. "I'm sorry. There were no survivors."
"No!" Anna cried. She clapped her hands over her mouth, her eyes filled with tears, and she turned and ran up the staircase, sobbing.
Elsa, on the other hand, hadn't moved at all. "Are—are you sure?" she asked, her voice quivering.
The guard walked up to Elsa and laid a hand lightly on her shoulder. She was too stunned to shrug it off. "I'm sorry," he said again, more gently this time. Then he left, along with Kai, Gerda, and the other servants, leaving Elsa alone.
She sank down to the bottom-most step and hugged her knees tightly. It wasn't true. It couldn't be true. Her parents couldn't be dead. She refused to believe it. Now who was to teach her to control her powers? Elsa couldn't bear the thought of living the rest of her life without her parents. She had been alone for the past ten years, but now with her parents gone, she felt more alone than ever. At least when she had been alone, they had come to visit her, but now, without them, and without Anna's regular visits, she had no one. And that made her more scared than she had ever felt in her life.
Meanwhile, Anna lay on her bed, crying loudly into her pillow, not caring that she was getting it wet, not caring that people might hear her. She was completely overwhelmed by grief. How could it happen that her parents, so young, strong, and healthy, could die so suddenly like that? It just didn't seem fair or right. She started thinking that if her parents had stayed home, they wouldn't have died. But how were they to have known? How was anyone to have known?
Anna wondered if Elsa was feeling the same grief she was, and how she was handling the death of their loving parents. It suddenly dawned on her that their death meant that Elsa was now queen, or would soon be queen. She wanted so much to be with her sister, especially now. She wanted to talk to her, hug her, comfort her, and be comforted in return. She didn't want to go through this grief alone, and she was sure Elsa didn't want to, either. She even considered for a moment going to Elsa's door to talk to her, but decided against it, as she knew Elsa would be unresponsive no matter what Anna said to her, especially now, after the tragedy.
She cried for hours, before eventually falling into an uneasy sleep. She had a nightmare about her parents' untimely death. She was on the ship with them when the storm began. The waves crashed against the ship, making it rock and roll and pitch. She was holding onto her parents' hands tightly, trying to get below decks, when a huge wave washed over the deck. Before she knew what was happening, she felt her parents' hands slip out of hers. She screamed their names, but her voice was lost to the howling wind. Another big wave crashed over her, flattening her to the deck. But just as suddenly as the storm had started, it ceased. She looked around, but her parents were gone, lost to the sea. Suddenly, she heard a sharp rapping, and awoke with a start.
She was in her room, still in her bed. The gray light of dawn was creeping through her window. The covers were mussed from her fitful sleep, her braids were loose and coming undone, and tears stained her cheeks. She saw herself in her vanity mirror. She looked a mess.
The sharp rapping came again. Someone was knocking on her door. "Your highness?" said a female voice. The handle jiggled and the door opened, revealing a short, plump, middle-aged woman dressed all in black. It was Gerda.
"Princess, it's time," she said quietly.
"Time?" Anna asked, confused. "Time for what?"
"Your parents' funeral, miss," Gerda answered. "You need to get ready. People have already started gathering." She left, closing the door softly behind her.
Anna dragged herself off her bed, went over to her wardrobe, and pulled out her black mourning dress, cloak, and cap. Once she was changed, she fixed her hair, washed her face, and then slowly made her way outside.
She looked around, and saw a small crowd of people gathered on a grassy hillside overlooking the fjord. Two large slabs of stone stood side by side on top of the hill, each guarding its respective grave. A coffin sat alongside each grave. Gerda saw Anna coming and ushered her to the front, where the minister, an older man of average build, was waiting.
The bishop cleared his throat. "Thank you all for coming," he said in a solemn voice. "Today, we celebrate the lives of two extraordinary monarchs. The king and queen had always been respected and held in the highest regard. They served their people with grace, wisdom, and above all, fairness. Because of this, they were loved by the whole kingdom…"
Anna's thoughts drifted off. The words the bishop used to describe her parents barely scratched the surface of what they had really been like while alive. Her father had been strong, honest, and loving, and her mother had been kind, gentle, and caring, and both had loved their family, especially their daughters, with all their hearts. But nothing – nothing – could describe the depth of affection Anna and Elsa had held for their beloved parents.
The bishop finished his eulogy. He then said a short blessing over the graves before the empty coffins were lowered into the cold, hard ground and covered with fresh dirt. Members of the crowd came up to Anna and offered their condolences before departing, leaving her to walk back to the castle alone.
Though she had been distracted by her thoughts during most of her parents' memorial service, Anna had noticed that someone was missing. Elsa had not come out of her room, even for her parents' memorial service. Anna didn't understand this. Elsa had to be just as saddened and grief-stricken as she was, but why had she remained in her room? Was nothing enough to make her come out?
Anna dispiritedly wandered the halls, passing many closed doors until she came to the one she had been looking for, the one with the blue patterns on it. She stopped in front of it, took a deep breath, and knocked softly.
"Elsa?" she said, just as softly. When there was no answer, she started singing the song she had used so many times to get her sister to come out, the song she had given up singing when she had given up hope. She knew it probably wouldn't work, but she wanted a way to express her feelings, to let Elsa know that she was there for her.
"Please I know you're in there.
People are asking where you've been
They say "have courage" and I'm trying to.
I'm right out here for you.
Just let me in.
We only have each other.
It's just you and me.
What are we gonna do?"
She slid down to the carpet, with her back against the door. She paused, trying to hold back her tears. Finally, in a quivering voice, she asked the old question she had stopped asking ten years ago, when she had given up hope.
"Do you want to build a snowman?"
Little did Anna know, Elsa was sitting right on the other side of the door, sharing in her grief, however silent it might be. Her head resting back against it like Anna's, she looked around her room through tear-filled eyes. It was almost completely unrecognizable. The floor and walls were covered in a thin layer of ice, frost coated every surface, icicles dangled from the ceiling, and a small blizzard hung suspended in midair. In her grief, she had completely frozen her room. Her emotions had escalated so much over the past two days, she was afraid she'd never be able to control her powers, especially now that her parents were gone.
She put her head on her knees, and, unable to hold it in any longer, let the tears flow freely down her face. On the other side of the door, Anna did the same thing. For the first time in ten years, the two sisters shared something with each other – their grief.
Well, I hope you enjoyed my second fanfic as much as I enjoyed writing it! Please, please, PLEASE review, and feel free to give me some ideas! Bye for now!