All was silent on the hill that overlooked the city, and further on, the sea. The view was gorgeous, perfect, the very essence of beautiful. Tables that had been laid out two weeks prior sat empty of all but the birds, that hopped around on them, curiously inspecting these strange aliens to their normal habitat. Chairs lay on their sides, blown over by the summer breeze. Ants wound their way up and down the maypole. The hill was deserted, and had been for two weeks.
And on Midsummer day, the tables and chairs and the maypole on the top of the hill were utterly deserted. "We'll have the wedding when Elsa comes back," Kristoff had said, Anna had agreed, and no more was said on the matter.
So the chairs and the tables and the maypole waited, by themselves, at the top of the hill. If they could be impatient they would have been, but furniture cannot feel impatience. So instead they just waited.
And down in the city, the People of Arendelle waited too, for there was nothing else to be done. Anna spent her days sending out search parties, signing seemingly endless documents for Charles, and trying not to cry at any given moment. Kristoff stayed by her side at every moment of the day, along with Olaf and Sven, trying to keep her mind off Elsa.
And so their life continued, right up to Midsummer day.
The entire day, Anna had been wishing terribly that Elsa would come back. She knew that if her sister didn't come back within the year, she herself would be crowned monarch of the land. And that was precisely something that she did not want to do. Anna was restless the entire day, and Kristoff looked at her worriedly when he thought she wasn't looking.
It was the next morning when there was a knock at the castle door.
The guard who was on duty at the time opened it, and fainted dead away. Elsa was on the other side, and she was shaking and crying, extremely distraught. The kingdom was immediately thrown into uproar and disarray.
/
Elsa was sitting on a couch in a living room, and Anna was sitting next to her, her arms around her sister, tear stains on her cheeks and a joyous expression on her face. The doctor was inspecting Elsa, but he finally stood up and folded his equipment. "There is positively nothing wrong with you," he said, "Except for your mental and emotional state. I prescribe rest."
"Wait… you're not sick anymore? Oh Elsa, I'm so glad!" Anna cried.
Elsa frowned slightly at her sister, shaking her head. "Thank you for your time," she said to the doctor. "You are excused." The man bent to kiss the queen's outstretched hand, before marching out of the room.
Anna did not waste a moment. "What happened? We haven't had a chance to talk properly! It's been so hard without you –"
"I know, Anna, and I appreciate what you must have gone through. I was lost in the woods, and I couldn't find my way out. It took a while to find my way back to the castle."
"I just can't believe that none of the search parties found you… You'd think that at least one could find their way to you!"
"Well, they can't have looked hard enough."
Anna gave her sister another hug. "Oh, I'm glad you're safe, anyway." She felt Elsa's arms tighten around her, and gave a little smile. Anna's eyes were starting to itch. Drat it, I can't cry now, not right now…
"It was just so hard, you know, Anna?" Elsa pulled away and looked at Anna with tears in her eyes. "So hard to be wandering through nowhere, knowing that you were looking for me and not being able to find me…"
"I know it was." Tears quivered in Anna's eyes. Drat it, I must be strong! Mustn't cry!
"You did look for me, didn't you?"
"Of course I did!" Anna gave her sister another desperate hug, mainly for the purpose of hiding the tears that were about to spill over her eyes. She quickly wiped them on her sister's shoulder – the blue dressing gown that she was wearing was a perfect absorber, leaving barely a stain.
"Let me look at you," Elsa was saying, and Anna sat back a bit and smiled. "Good, you're just the same. I was worried that you would have changed. It's crazy, but I was worrying that I somehow had travelled forward in time and by the time I got back you would be married, be queen, have forgotten about me…"
Anna squeezed her sister's hand, before asking the question that had been bugging her all morning. "Elsa, how did you get lost in the first place?" Elsa paused, an infinite pause, a pause that hung in the air as the queen bit her lip and Anna waited. "Elsa?"
"I don't want you to know. I don't want to hurt you."
Anna was paying full attention now, sitting up, eyes alert. "Elsa, you know you can say anything to me. Come on, whatever it is I'll make sure it's dealt with."
"I can't, I can't tell you…" Anna could see that her sister was getting back into her scared mode, her worried mode, her anxious mode.
"Hey, it'll be okay," smiled Anna, though she was anything but happy. "You can tell me. It'll be fine."
Elsa took a deep breath, in and out, in and out. Then she spoke. "Anna, I was lying in bed when I was tied up by a man in a mask and carried out into the woods. He left me by a tree, and tied me to it – my hands were tied, I couldn't use my powers. Are you… are you sure you're okay?"
Anna was breathing heavily. "I can't believe that anyone would dare to do that," she cried.
Elsa continued, with a slight catch in her voice. "Then he said, and I quote, "I couldn't bear to kill you, so I leave you here to think on your sins. Your kingdom is mine." And Anna, then he left –"
"He! Who was it, Elsa? Do you know who it was?" cried Anna, thinking of a certain man named Hans and praying it wasn't him.
"Oh Anna, I couldn't possibly tell you who it was, I just can't…"
"Elsa, you know that I am one hundred percent over him, so just tell me."
"Who?"
"Oh never mind, just tell me. Come on Elsa." And, in a softer tone, "It's okay, you know. You can tell me."
"It was… it was Kristoff."
The world stopped.
An eternity passed before Anna was able to summon her voice back enough to stammer, "Kristoff?"
"Oh Anna, this is why I didn't want to tell you, I am so sorry. But now we know the truth! We know the truth about him, and I am so glad that it isn't too late." There were tears sitting like stars in Elsa's eyes. "Anna, Anna! Anna, breath!"
Anna sucked in a breath that hurt. It hurt. "I… don't… I can't see…"
"I know you can't, and it's okay."
"But he wouldn't have done such a thing! He couldn't have! It's… it's Kristoff!"
"Anna," and her voice was soft and sincere, "Would I lie to you?"
"No, but…"
"Anna. Please trust me."
"No, no, no, no, no…."
"I know it's hard, but Anna, you need to trust me."
And then Anna remembered how tired Kristoff had been the morning after Elsa had disappeared. She remembered how he had never left her side, how he had always offered to do her paperwork for her. Anna looked into Elsa's eyes, and with a great effort, she trusted her. Then she collapsed, sobbing. The realisation that her fiancé did not love her, only wanted her throne, was too much. He was just another Hans. And as much as Anna disliked it, despised it, hated it, she knew it was true.
She knew her sister would never lie to her.
/
"But Anna…"
"Enough. I know what you did." And Anna hated herself just then, because she still loved him, even when she knew that he was as good as a murderer. "Elsa wouldn't lie to me." She was telling herself as much as him. "You have tried to kill my sister, and in the process, you killed our relationship. It's over, Kristoff, done completely."
"But Anna, I didn't –"
"Well, you should have thought about that before you did it then, shouldn't you." Anna was angry; at Kristoff, herself, even a bit at Elsa. "The Queen could have you executed, you know. She could have you thrown into prison for the rest of your misera- your life. But she has been merciful –"
"For your sake," said Kristoff, looking at her with empty eyes.
"No, because she is merciful," said Anna, trying to snap but failing. "You are banished. Leave the city and never come back. And if we find you around here ever again, you will be executed immediately." Anna reached into her dress and pulled out the snowflake pendant. She paused, captivated by it, before unfastening it and holding it out to him.
Kristoff shook his head. She couldn't bear to look at him in the eye as he said, "Keep it."
"What, so you can know whenever I'm in danger? Not likely." But she said it half-heartedly, looking down at the ground.
"You promised to never take it off," said Kristoff, his voice croaking. "Keep it."
Anna still couldn't look at him. She tucked the pendant in her pocket, and said, "Okay. Well then, goodbye."
"Goodbye."
Anna wanted to say apologise. She wanted to cry. She wanted to throw her arms around his neck and kiss him, and cry, "I know it wasn't you!" But it was. He had tried to Kill Her Sister. And so, instead of crying, she said, "I'm sorry."
She couldn't look at him; his eyes were empty and silent.
And then she turned, and went inside, leaving Kristoff standing outside the castle gates staring after her.
/
The queen watched from the window of her room as her sister told her lover that she knew what he had done. Tears hung in Elsa's eyes like dewdrops. How could I do this. I'm such a monster, such a horrible person.
No. I can't think like that. I can't. I'm doing this for my people, for my mother, for my sister. They deserve a real life.
Elsa watched as her sister walked into the castle, and Kristoff stood for a moment, before turning and walking into the city. She knew that he would only stay to collect his reindeer, before he would leave. There was nothing for him in Arendelle anymore. You did that. You're the reason why your sister is crying in her room, why Kristoff is wanting to kill you for real but won't because he loves Anna. It's you, it's all your fault. My fault. All my fault.
No. She shook her head. These bouts of the voice inside her head telling her she was worthless were getting longer and longer, and harder to manage. I mustn't listen. Remember what mother said, "When the voice comes, remember it's just trying to make itself happy." I mustn't let the voice be happy. Elsa breathed in, breathed out, and made a snowflake just for good measure.
"It's okay," she said to herself, "Let's just hang in there. Why don't you make it snow? Will that make you happy?"
Elsa nodded to herself – making it snow would make her happy – before casting up her hand, and forming little ice crystals that fell down, tickling her skin and sticking in her eyelashes. She laughed then, a new laugh, a cold laugh, worthy of an ice queen with powers such as hers.
And then she stood in front of her door, her hand suspended in the air, hesitating as the snow fell thickly on the floor and landed in her hair. Anna needs comforting, and it's the least I can do.
Your mother said to keep your heart cold, said the voice. You can't do that if you keep going around, comforting a woman who isn't even your sister! Anna is nothing to you!
She's still my sister!
No she isn't. She's nothing to you.
"No!" cried Elsa, surprising herself. She shook her head, and whispered, "Anna is still my sister, regardless of whether or not she is actually related by blood. She is my sister and I love her, and I may give up everything else to keep me safe, but I'm not giving up Anna. Do you understand?"
The voice was silent. Elsa smiled triumphantly, before opening up the door with a jerk and hurrying down the hall towards Anna's room. Anna needed comforting, and she couldn't just sit around and do nothing – she had done enough damage already.
