A/N: Real life is being a real pain, but I refuse to give in. The story shall go on, even if it kills me!
And now, we return to your irregularly scheduled program…
Several times, Anna had to cut her study short because of failing light. She always moved back to the bedroom to sleep, as it was more easily defended. The couches were more comfortable, but had more directions she could be attacked from. It often became VERY frustrating to be interrupted. There was nothing left to prevent her from losing hope when it became dark.
After a couple hours sleep, Anna woke up to voices coming from the darkness. It sounded like another young girl, but this was the first she time heard anyone speaking. 'Of course, all the assassins thus far have been young girls. Why would this one be any different?' thought Anna. As quietly as possible, Anna readied her dagger and headed for her dining area, taking small comfort in the pitch black and her growing skills at stealth.
"Hello…? Hellooo… is anybody there?"called a scared voice. Following the voice, Anna made her way from the dining room to her sitting area. Every once in a while, Anna could hear the girl trip, or grunt as she walked into something. This assassin seemed to have trouble in the stealth department.
'This is no different than the previous assassins. She is being deliberately clumsy to draw me out, another assassin is following her waiting to attack me, or this is something new. All things considered, I can't afford to take any chances."
Following the voice, she entered the library. It wasn't long after that Anna started to hear crying from the girl's direction. There were no signs of a second assassin as far as she could tell. 'I can't let this change what I have to do. Hesitation could get me killed.'
The girl seemed to be following the right hand walls based on the noises she made. This was basically confirmed when the girl stumbled through the doorframe leading to the bath. Anna had been in her little maze for weeks now, and knew the rough layout of each room from memory. It didn't hurt the rooms were all the same size and the door frames were almost exactly in the middle of the walls. Walking across the library directly to the door, she made no sound.
A sudden squeal, followed by a splash and spluttering covered Anna further as she entered the bathing room herself. She could hear the girl emerging from the water, her teeth chattering in the darkness. Quiet sobbing reached Anna's ears and wrenched at her heart. As the girl reached dry ground, Anna made a decision. Leaping at the girl, Anna tackled her and quickly pinned her to the floor before the surprised girl could react. Anna could hear the little gasp as she connected, and the air rushing from her lungs as Anna landed on top of her.
Without waiting for her to recover her breath, Anna flipped the girl onto her stomach and sat on her back. She held both the girl's hands above her head as she worked to take a breath. It was definitely a smaller girl, thankfully, so Anna had no trouble holding both hands with only her left hand. Once she had a firm grip and the girl was fully pinned, Anna finally waited for the girl to catch her breath. The girl trembled uncontrollably in fear as she lies under Anna larger form.
Once the girl was breathing somewhat normally again, Anna began searching the girl for weapons with her right hand. The girl began to cry harder the more places Anna searched and was almost wailing as Anna attempted to search the inside of her legs near her crotch.
"Be quiet and be still. I'm searching for weapons, not trying to get friendly. One wrong move and I won't hesitate to slit your throat. I really don't want to, but I will defend myself from anything I think may threaten me.
"I don't have any!" wailed the girl.
"BE QUIET! I'll be the judge about whether you are armed or not. Don't lie to me and don't give me a reason to feel threatened by you, and you may actually survive this night."
"You attacked me first," whispered the girl.
"I've had enough people try to kill me in the dark, so I can't afford to take any chances. Count your lucky stars that you are still alive right now. NOW BE QUIET. I need to hear if somebody came in with you. If I think you're making noise to cover somebody else's movements down here, your throat and my dagger will become closer friends than you really want to be. Don't force me to hurt you."
"Yes ma'am," whimpered the girl as she stifled a sob. Anna could still feel the girl trembling under her, and the little jerks as she silently sobbed. To her credit, she barely made any sounds at all. Anna sat there in the dark after she finished searching her. She couldn't chance letting her go until the lights came back on. After about ten minutes of silence, Anna made another decision. Carefully, she stood up without releasing the girl's hands.
"Get up."
"What?" the confused girl quietly asked.
"You're comfortable enough to sit on for hours until the lights come back on, but it must be uncomfortable for you. Hold my hand with both of yours and come with me. If you really want to stay on the cold floor while I sit on you for the next several hours, you can. The choice is yours."
It only took a moment for Anna to feel the girl start to get up. She could imagine the girl nodding in the dark, not remembering Anna could not see her. Not once did Anna lose contact with either of the girl's hands. 'Don't get complacent Anna! She could be waiting for you to drop your guard!'
Once they were both standing, Anna led her back to the sitting room. Leading her to the chairs in the middle, Anna sat her down with her legs together. Once again, Anna sat on the girl, straddling her thighs so they were face to face.
'Not an ideal position, but I'll feel her tense up if she tries to attack.'
Anna sat there for the next few hours, keeping most of her weight off the girl's legs. While neither girl spoke, they both seemed to be trying to accommodate the other girl's small movements to remain comfortable. Anna was amazed at how well the young girl followed directions to the letter.
'This is almost too easy. Keep your guard up Anna! Keep your Yawn guard up!'
Several times before the lanterns relit, Anna realized her head was hanging down. It was a struggle to remain awake but she couldn't afford to sleep until she had a better idea what was happening. With only a couple hours of sleep, Anna felt more like the walking dead than a prison guard. Sitting down on a nice, comfortable (if skinny) lap did not help.
Eventually, Anna picked up her head off the other girl's shoulder and looked around though bloodshot eyes. The lanterns had been lit and she could see everything in the room. Looking at her pillow, she could see the big drool mark on the girl's shoulder. Snapping her eyes to her prisoners, she could see the girl smiling, and attempting not to laugh, as she stared back at her. Everything came back to her all at once. With a startled jerk, Anna tipped backward and slid backward off her perch to land unceremoniously on the floor. Windmilling arms failed to have any effect whatsoever.
While Anna stood up rubbing her hind quarter, she got a closer look at the girl she sitting watch over. Behind a face trying its hardest not to laugh, Anna saw a girl of about ten years of age. Penetrating eyes peeked out from under greasy black hair. Her skin was very tanned and her clothes were in tatters. The rips in her clothes left little to the imagination, including that she was only barely into puberty at best.
"Alright then. Since we're both awake, I'm going to do a more thorough weapon search. Depending on what I can find, we'll talk after. If you would, please lay down on the floor on your stomach. Put your hands straight up above your head."
As the girl complied silently, Anna was glad to get out from under her gaze. From the heat she could feel on her cheeks, she wasn't sure if she had ever been that embarrassed or that careless. 'She could have killed you! Stupid, stupid, stupid!'
Anna did a very thorough search, leaving nothing to chance or the imagination. The girl remained silent and still throughout. Anna did hesitate before searching more sensitive areas, but she wasn't ready to let her guard down again. The girl visibly tensed and bit her lip while Anna did a surface check, but she offered no resistance. It was obvious to Anna that she was relieved it wasn't an invasive check.
Rolling the girl over, Anna repeated her search on the newly exposed side. Again, Anna paused before checking into more sensitive areas, saving those for last. The girl didn't have breasts to speak of, but the check on the legs and between was uncomfortable for both girls. It became even more uncomfortable when Anna realized the younger girl was becoming aroused. The check ended very quickly after that realization.
'And I thought I was embarrassed before!'
"OK, you're… clean. Sooo, how 'bout you tell me your name young lady," stammered Anna as she motioned the girl to take a seat.
"P-patty," said the girl as she took a seat. After a brief look at Anna, she dropped her eyes to the ground.
'Great, just great! She thinks I'm into groping little girls! What next?' thought Anna as her face somehow managed to redden even more. "OK, Patty. I'm Anna. How did you get here?"
"I have no idea. I was passing through a small town north of the capital when four guards stopped me. They said they were looking for kidnapers in the area. After answering a few questions, somebody behind me hit me in the head. A bag was pulled over my head while I was trying to remember which way was up. Next thing I knew, I woke up in the dark here. You found me shortly after."
"Sounds familiar. I was brought here the same way after talking to two palace guards outside Arendelle castle. Do you know anything about our captors?"
Patty just shook her head. "I haven't talked to anybody since I was taken."
"Can you defend yourself in a fight?"
"I'm not going to attack you."
"That's not the point. I told you before people have tried to kill me. Well, three people have tried since I was abducted. Successful defense has rewards above continuing to live. Failure does not appear to be an option."
"I don't think I'd be much help. When it came to fighting, I've usually been able to either talk my way out of trouble, or outrun the other person. When I've been caught, it's never been a fair fight. I've always been outnumbered. Doesn't give you much time to learn how to fight before they knock you down."
"Well, in that case, avoid a fight here too. Stay by me and I'll do my best to protect you. Don't bother trying to talk your way out; I don't think they'll listen. As long as you don't stab me in the back or sabotage my protection, you'll come to no harm from me. Be forewarned, treachery cannot be tolerated while we're trapped here."
Anna paused to look at the girl. Patty took a moment to think before nodding.
"Should anything happen, hide. If it's dark, hide in a corner so I have a rough idea where you may be. Be as still as you can when hiding, especially if it's dark. Each of the attacks thus far has happened in the dark, but there is no guarantee of safety during lit hours."
Patty nodded again when Anna paused. Anna could see the fear and uncertainty lining the younger girl's face.
"Patty, I'm taking a big chance in trusting you this soon after we met. I don't really know you, and you don't know me if what you said before is true. Make no mistake, this is a very dangerous place. If an attack comes in the dark, I find them by listening to how they move. If I hear you but I'm not sure where you really are, I could hurt you badly. I could even kill you before I know I'm after the wrong person." Putting a hand under Patty's chin, she brought her head up to look her in the eye. "This is about as serious as it gets Patty. While I would prefer to lead them away in case I cannot win, you're not so defenseless if I'm nearby. I need to know, do you think you can hide quietly, or will I need to draw attackers away from where you are hiding?"
"I-I can do it."
"Good girl. I'll do everything I can to get us through this." Reaching over, Anna gives Patty a hug around the shoulders. She couldn't help but smile when it was tentatively returned after a moment of hesitation. When Patty realized Anna really wasn't going to hurt her, Anna could feel her hug turn into a desperate clinging. Deliberately relaxing muscles she hadn't realized were tense, Anna assured her "We'll get through this… together."
As Anna looked down at Patty, she was reminded of the warm hugs she used to get from Elsa when they were little. How long had it been since she had been hugged by anybody? For the last year, Kristoff had been very supportive, but treated her like a piece of wet paper he was trying to peel off a table. He seemed scared to touch her. Now she realized just how much she missed that touch. Idly, Anna wondered what Elsa had been doing since she was taken, and desperately wished they were together now. A single tear glistened in her eye as she thought about her sister.
"My Lord, she has taken your lamb under her protection."
"Of course she did. I knew she would. People less fortunate than herself will ALWAYS be her weakness." As usual, the lord sat in a darkened area of the room. This time, he was nursing a glass of red wine.
"What are your orders?"
"Give them time to get attached to one another. It will make Anna's training all the easier. Lengthen to amount of light they get by at least an hour or two. In a few days, we'll either send in another lamb, or the lion. Either way, I'm satisfied that she has become more stable now that a helpless somebody relies on her. My chance at revenge on the monster of Arendelle has just increased tenfold. If she was any more predictable, this would be too easy. Keep me updated on any changes, and I'll inform you what the next course of action when the time comes. Until then, I have a loose end to attend to. Dismissed."
"My Lord," replied the captain before turning to leave. Idly, he noted that was one of their more comfortable meetings. He was beginning to wonder if the pay was really enough if he had to go though many more of these meetings.