(WARNING: This chapter contains HEAVY Elsanna/Icest.)
That night four anarchists descended upon the capital of Arendelle, infiltrating the castle itself with the help of a complicit guard. The five conspirators wore head-coverings with the intent of obscuring their identities and would be found carrying anti-monarchical literature on their persons. Again, with the help of the guard, they traversed the castle in silence, the only disturbance of consequence being a servant-girl, who was silenced before she could raise alarm with a flurry of crossbow bolts.
It would later be determined that they had long discussed subversive topics at a cafe in a more agrarian part of Arendelle, but the investigators were surprised to find no evidence suggesting collusion with the Southern Isles. Indeed, it seemed to look as if political radicalism, in and of itself, was their main motivation- and the timing itself was never proven to be anything more than a coincidence.
By any means, it appears that of the group, two went to hide the body while the other three continued towards the royal bedchamber. There was another fight then with the two guards assigned at the time to stand sentry outside the door. The guards were both killed, but not before they could raise the alarm. Regardless, of the three assassins, two survived, one with only minor injuries, and they forced the door open to the Queen's bedchamber. At this point, it is believed that the two assassins who had been tasked with hiding the body returned, only to find a sizable group of guards charging in their direction. These two were killed, the only other loss of life being a guard who was struck with a bolt that passed under his chainmail, sticking deep in his side.
The two assassins who had infiltrated the bedchamber, upon realizing that the Queen was not present therein, laid down their weapons and surrendered. The worse injured of the two later died in custody, leaving a single assassin still alive- a young man by the name of Rikhard. A native of Arendelle.
Elsa and Anna, however, found themselves in a secret location just outside of town, sitting on the untreated wood floor across the room from one another. Originally, this was a place for storing foodstuffs, and the accommodations bore out that reality. The walls were plaster, the only window being a grate with heavy iron bars- something the guards had covered the moment they arrived to obscure the view of the new royal residents. The sisters each had a bed to themselves, set up in opposite corners of the room. An oil lamp hung in the middle of everything, giving off a low flickering flame.
"It smells a bit like apples, doesn't it?" Anna asked. The air was almost uncomfortably dry, and she itched her nose.
"I don't smell it." Elsa replied, "How do you know it wasn't potatoes, or oats, or something like that?"
"Because I know you like apples." Anna reasoned, "Safe enough to shelter an apple, appropriate for a queen's retreat."
Elsa rolled her eyes. "Don't say stupid things." She admonished, internally smiling. It was still weird to hear the word queen being thrown around so casually. A pale pink blush lit up her porcelain cheeks.
"Forgive me, my queen." Anna said, feigning deference with a knowing smirk. "By the way, I have a gift." She lifted her skirt, exposing her calf, attached to which was a flat amber bottle by means of a belt.
Elsa felt her cheeks burn, making a point to avert her eyes as her sister undid the belt, setting the bottle on the floor with a low, glassy sound.
"Kristoff picked it out, you know how terrible I am at that sort of thing." She said.
"You're old enough to drink, you know. You didn't need to sneak it in." She chewed her lip.
"I know, I just don't need the guards thinking I'm a drunk." Anna replied, straightening her skirt. "Can you imagine?"
"You're such a kid."
Anna seemed pleased by the compliment. "I'm only the princess. You're the one with the real responsibility."
Elsa crossed her arms, face still hot to the touch. "What do you call that stuff, anyway?"
"Oh this? It's sort of a fermented cider, I guess. There's a trading post near the North Mountain that brews it." There was a lull in the conversation. "D-do you want a drink?"
"Does it look like we have any glasses?" Elsa asked.
Anna tugged hard at the cork, "Well, I was thinking- we could, you know.. It might not be that big of a deal if we drank out of the same bottle, right? I mean, we're sisters." She strained.
Anna's words echoed around Elsa's head, and she blushed harder. "Give me that." She sighed. She took the bottle, popping the cork with her thumb in no time. She passed the bottle back to Anna. "...Well?"
Anna paused. "You're gonna drink, right? I don't want to do this and have you sober, judging me."
"You're only the princess, aren't you? You don't have any real responsibility." Elsa replied, only relenting when she saw the petulant, pleading look on Anna's face. "Okay, sure. Whatever. I'll drink."
An hour later, Anna and Elsa found themselves leaning up against the wall, so close to one another their shoulders were touching.
"So, truthfully." Anna slurred, leaning hard on her sister. "Kristoff is a good guy, right?"
Elsa wished she could stop staring at Anna's ruby red lips. "Yeah." She replied, tilting the bottle back and taking another gulp.
"I mean, you know? He's like, I mean, you know, He uh..." Anna hiccuped. "Okay, okay, okay. Okay, so like.. He's a good guy, right?"
"Anna. Anna. Y-you've been talking about the same thing for twenty minutes." Elsa replied, trying to keep from laughing. "Kristoff is fine."
"I mean, I know..." Anna visibly struggled to find the appropriate word. "We love each other, like, big time..." She rubbed her nose, every freckle looking ready to sizzle and fly off, her face was so red. "B-but.. Mm..." She leaned into the crook of Elsa's neck, "Is there any left?"
"It's empty." Elsa lied, "You've had enough, regardless." She laughed, running her hand through Anna's hair.
Anna shifted slightly, looking into Elsa's eyes. She placed her hand on the inside of Elsa's thigh, and Elsa could feel her pulse double instantly. "I saw you looking up my skirt earlier." Anna breathed, getting very close.
"Anna, I-"
Anna leaned forward, pressing her lips against her sisters. When Elsa didn't shove her away instantly or protest, she deepened the kiss until it was broken by Elsa, who found herself gasping hotly.
Wordlessly, they kissed again. This would continue until they fell asleep, propped up comically against one another, sitting upright leaning on the plaster wall as the oil lamp flickered hotly overhead.
(Thanks for the feedback so far, guys! If you want to do some beta reading, feel free to get in touch for my skype! Thank you!)