Anna

I had one of those rare mornings where I voluntarily woke up early without any assistance, though it probably had something to do with me sleeping in the barn again the night before after we had been sword fighting. I had done that a lot over the past week. At night, it was easier for me to sneak around any servants, and Kristoff wasn't working, so we had plenty of time to spend together and stare at the stars. He kept telling me that one day our luck was going to run out, that we would be seen together this late and people would talk, but I told him, "Let them talk. It doesn't matter. I love you." Yes, I was naive, but that didn't make it any less true.

"You won't be allowed to see me anymore if they catch us," he warned, and that had scared me a little, but I still wasn't deterred.

"Then, they won't catch us," I kept saying, and we returned to watching the stars, and I eventually fell asleep lying in the straw in his arms. It didn't look or feel or smell anything like the plush, comfortable rooms inside the castle where I had grown up, but somehow, it was better. It was perfect, and while Kristoff continued to worry, I knew he felt the same.

Kristoff was awake before dawn, and the shifting of the straw woke me up as well. "Good morning," I mumbled as he stood and stretched.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's okay," I assured him. I stretched out where I lay and frowned at how stiff I felt. The cold seemed to have seeped into my joints despite the cloak I wore. "I wanted to see you off anyway."

Kristoff started leading Sven out to the courtyard. "I'd do anything to not go," he admitted.

"But you still have to work," I said, following him. "I understand. You've been putting it off since I got back."

He nodded. "I need to go into town to refresh a few supplies, and then I'll be off."

"Oh, can I come?"

"Looking like that?" he laughed.

I punched him playfully before looking down and seeing just how sloppy I looked. Straw clung to every wrinkle in my dress, as well as patches of dirt and stray fur. "I'll change. You should, too." Kristoff rolled his eyes but nodded anyway. "See you in about half an hour?"

"Of course."

We stood for a moment, and then quickly, I gave him a small kiss on the lips.

"What was that?" he asked.

"A goodbye kiss."

"What for?"

I shrugged. "Well, I just thought since I wasn't allowed to do it in town..." I trailed off, smiling at him.

After that, I ran back into the castle, sprinted up the stairs, and barreled down the hallway, only to crash right into Prince Hans. The impact knocked both of us to the ground in a pile of bruised and tangled limbs and embarrassment. "Hans!" I exclaimed, out of breath. He looked at me funny for a second before I realized my error. "Sorry. That was informal. And awkward. Not that you're awkward, but my awkward-" He laughed, and I remembered that we were still on top of each other. "Sorry." I pushed myself off of him.

Prince Hans stood, brushed off his crisp white uniform, and offered a hand to help me up. "It's quite alright, Princess, but we really have to stop bumping into each other like this," he chuckled.

I took his hand and also brushed myself off, sending straw and dirt everywhere. "Oops," I said, but Prince Hans seemed to find it all really amusing.

"Forgive me, but what are you doing up at this hour?" he asked, noting my disheveled appearance.

"Oh, I was just..." I began, fiddling with one of my braids. "Well, I could ask you the same question, couldn't I?"

"Yes, I suppose you could," he agreed. "It is your home, after all."

"So?"

Prince Hans frowned. "I just had a little trouble sleeping. That's all." I stared at him curiously, noticing for the first time in the dim lighting that he didn't look too well.

"It's just the bogeyman messing with you," I tried to tease, realizing too late that that wasn't really funny at all.

"Hm?"

"Oh, nothing. Just something my dad used to say or whatever."

Prince Hans nodded. "I see. Well, good morning, Princess Anna. I'm going out to get some air."

"Anna," I said hastily, causing him to pause. "Just Anna. It feels weird for some people to call me 'Princess' when, you know, it's just me."

Prince Hans smiled sweetly. "Just you?"

I smiled back, waved shyly, and ran the rest of the way back to my room, only to find Elsa also already up, looking very troubled as she stared out the window at the rising sun. She turned around as I entered. "Where were you?" she wondered.

"Where do you think?" I replied on my way to the closet. As I changed behind the curtain, I announced, "I'm going into town to see Kristoff off."

"Alright," she said, not paying very much attention. I wondered if that bad dream from last night was still bothering her.

"Do you want to come?"

"What? No, no. I, uh, I think I should stay here today," she answered. I emerged from the closet in a warmer dress. The weather was starting to get very chilly.

"Aw," I whined. "I was hoping to go get chocolate afterward."

Elsa laughed, shook her head, and walked over to me. "I'll let you and Kristoff have your time together. Speaking of, any idea if or when a proposal might happen? I'd like to be prepared, you know," she teased.

"I don't have a clue, Elsa. We haven't talked about anything like that since, well, you know." I sighed. Elsa gave my hand a small but comforting squeeze, and I tried to change the subject. "What about you and Prince Hans?"

She immediately grew stiff. "There's nothing to talk about."

"Don't give me that! I see you two together all the time!"

"Anna-!"

"Oh, look at the time! I have to go meet Kristoff. We'll talk later." With that, I rushed out the door.

Rapunzel

I felt the sun on my face, warm despite being so late in the year. I raised my head from my pillow, wincing as the world spun around me. I wondered when morning had come. I hadn't noticed it despite not getting any sleep.

It was very late for me to be getting out of bed. Normally, I was up and about at the crack of dawn, rising with the morning sun, but my recent restlessness had taken its toll.

When had Jack left? He had comforted me all night long, keeping a cool, steady arm around my shoulders as I sobbed and sobbed without telling him why. In a way, it had felt good to let out all that emotion, but the stress of being unable to tell him the reason behind my misery weighed heavily upon me. He must have floated off after I had calmed down and descended into a dazed, lifeless state.

Of course, I could still tell him, but what would happen then? Over and over, Mother Gothel had assured me that if I were to do so, she would tear my family apart. She had us in the palm of her hand, even when we didn't realize it, like puppets on strings, and if I refused to comply to her wishes, she would cut those strings.

I often dared to think that what she said was impossible, that our family was too strong, but then what if? What if she had managed to squeeze into the smallest of cracks in our relationship? What if she could break hearts with the simplest of words? I tried to tell myself that I was being silly. When I was little, it had seemed like she had controlled the entire world - my entire world, contained in that small room high in the tower, but I realized now that she was just an old woman with a few magic tricks.

But what if?

I couldn't be selfish enough to risk my family's lives for my own. After all, what other cost was there to singing one simple song every night?

My freedom, I thought grimly to myself.

I groaned and rubbed my forehead. I had gone over this conundrum every night since Mother Gothel had reappeared in my life to ruin it, and every night, I ended up at the same crossroads where I had started.

I slipped out of bed to go get dressed but had to pause as the ground began to feel increasingly unsteady beneath my feet. I trudged over to my vanity, too aware of my hair dragging behind me. It felt unnaturally heavy that morning. I had only just sat down when a knock came at my door. "Come in," I said, feeling my voice crack from not being given enough rest. I swallowed hard and rubbed my throat before putting on a mask of sunniness for my guest.

I smiled genuinely when I saw that it was Elsa coming through the door, her icy dress glittering in the mid-morning sunlight. I hadn't seen too much of either of my daughters lately. Kristoff had delayed his next trip to the mountains so that he could spend more time with Anna after she returned, and they had been making the most of their time together, though propriety still dictated nearly all of their outings. Elsa had been taking on more duties around the castle, preparing for the day when she would one day become queen, but even with all of this on her plate, I noticed that she managed to save some extra time for Prince Hans, whom she was finally starting to feel at ease with.

Elsa came to stand behind me at the vanity. "Good morning, Dear," I told her, trying to keep my voice light.

"Good morning, Mother. How are you this morning?"

"I'm doing well." I turned around to face her, only to see that she didn't believe me in the slightest. "What's the matter? You look worried."

"You don't look well," she replied, gesturing to the mirror. I looked back and saw what she had meant. Despite my regenerative abilities, I still looked tired and worn, my face having lost some of its youthful glow. My smile - it seemed wrong, dull. I hardly recognized myself.

I twisted a lock of hair nervously. "It's nothing. I'm just a little drained from working. That's all," I assured her. "Now, was there something you wanted to speak with me about?"

"Actually, that was what I wanted to speak with you about. You see, I had this dream, and well, you wouldn't believe who was in it." She suddenly paused, deciding that for whatever reason, she wasn't going to elaborate on that. "Anyway, in my dream, I was told to watch out for you, and I was so worried that I couldn't sleep all night, and now that I see you like this, I'm very concerned." Elsa, who still had a habit of hiding her emotions, looked almost panicked. What was I to do? I couldn't tell her and make her worry more.

"Please, don't worry about me," I insisted. "And no more staying up all night. I can cure many things, but insomnia is not one of them. That's more of your Father's and the Guardians' department." As I said this, I stood, only realizing too late that it had been a mistake. I had gotten up too fast, and my vision instantly swam, the ground rocked back and forth, and after missing the corner of the vanity I was planning to cling to for support, I collapsed to the floor out of exhaustion.

"Mother!" Elsa cried, kneeling beside me in an instant, though her face seemed fuzzy and distant, and her voice was faint and muffled. "No, no, no. He was right. I can't believe it. He was telling the truth." I never got the chance to ask who she was talking about before my eyes became too heavy and closed on their own accord.

When I woke up, I felt a cold hand against my face, and I leaned into the touch. "Jack," I mumbled, blinking several times before I could see his face clearly.

He smiled brilliantly at me. "Hey, you're okay," he assured me, pushing back loose strands of hair from my face. I noticed that someone - probably Jack - had carried me back into bed.

"What happened?"

"You passed out. Elsa was there, and she ran to find me as soon as it happened," Jack explained.

"I'm so sorry," I moaned, pressing the heels of my hands against my eyes.

Jack only chuckled and kissed me on the forehead. "For what? You've been overworked these past few weeks. You were under a lot of stress. I think a meltdown was inevitable."

"Yeah. Overworked..." I lied.

"You just need some rest. Elsa can run the kingdom for a day, and I'll stay here and make sure you're well taken care of." I gave him a weak smile. "I'm guessing you'll want some hazelnut soup?" he asked, already starting for the door.

"Actually, no," I said too quickly. Jack paused and stared at me over his shoulder. "Some hot chocolate will do."

For a moment, Jack hesitated, but eventually he shrugged and carried on. "Anything you want, Snowflake!"

Once the door had closed behind him and I was sure he was far enough away, I grabbed a pillow near me and pressed it to my face to muffle my scream of frustration.

Jack

I flew around the castle until I found Gerda, one of the few servants that knew of my existence, and informed her of Rapunzel's request for hot chocolate. She asked if she should bring it straight to her room, and I told her no, I would handle it. Rapunzel worked hard. She deserved this day of rest, and I would wait on her hand and foot if she so desired, but there was something else. I was worried.

Rapunzel hardly ever took a day off unless it involved family. She dealt with other people's problems because she had none of her own. (Well, that wasn't entirely true, but I'm referring to ailments more physical in nature.) She never took a sick day because she never got sick. We had always figured that it had something to do with her healing magic. It was impossible for her to be hurt or ill.

Something was different. She had collapsed. Most likely from exhaustion, sure, but something still seemed off. I knew that there were some things that her magic couldn't fix. It couldn't mend a broken heart, and it couldn't soothe the spirit. I suspected that there was something she wasn't telling me, and I was baffled by it. She was very different from Elsa. It wasn't like her to shut people out.

Speaking of Elsa, I flew to her after I had spoken to Gerda. Elsa was in the main study, shooing away concerned dignitaries and servants while she tried to look over some important documents. Upon seeing me, she got rid of the last of them and set the documents in a neat stack on the edge of the large desk. I shut the door behind me so that we could talk.

"How's it going?" I asked her.

She smoothed out her braid only for several strands to come loose again. "I could get a lot more done if I wasn't so frequently interrupted, but they're all concerned about Mother," she sighed. "How is she, by the way? She gave me an awful fright."

"She's fine, Elsa. The stress of everything just got to her, I think. She just woke up a little while ago, and I'm keeping an eye on her today. You can send for me if you ever need anything."

"I think I can manage," she said with a rare burst of confidence. "I don't mind paperwork. It's irritating and exhausting, but it's no worse than learning how to waltz."

"Really? You haven't seemed to mind waltzing so much lately," I pointed out, raising my eyebrow suggestively. Elsa scowled at me, but before she could open her mouth to comment, someone knocked at the door. Elsa opened it to reveal - speak of the devil - Prince Hans of the Southern Isles, dressed as formally and as stiff-backed as always. If possible, he seemed to straighten up a little when he saw Elsa.

"Princess Elsa, I only just heard the news. Is everything alright?" he asked, concerned.

"The Queen is fine," Elsa assured him. "She's simply taking the day off for rest, nothing more. I'm running the kingdom in her stead."

The prince nodded. "You must be very busy, then."

"The interruptions certainly haven't helped," she hinted.

For once, he actually seemed to listen, and I wondered if this "appeasement" tactic Elsa assured me she had been using had some merit. "I'll get out of your hair, then," he paused, "unless, of course, you require any assistance, your highness."

"I'm doing just fine on my own, thank you," she told him with a haughty tilt of her chin.

"Oh. Well, I'll leave you to it. If you do find you need me, I won't be far, and perhaps, if you aren't too busy later..."

"Prince Hans, I don't think that's very appropriate considering the situation," she scolded. I flew over and placed a hand on her shoulder, reminding her to chill out (ha). I felt her relax ever so slightly beneath my palm.

"Right," he agreed, but for the briefest second, I caught a glimpse of that forlorn, dejected expression crossing his face that Elsa often described as being like "a lost puppy." She was pretty on the nose with that description. "Good day, Princess Elsa." He gave a deep bow.

"Good day, Prince Hans." He turned to leave as she began closing the door, but suddenly, she stopped as something crossed her mind. "Wait!" she called to him.

Prince Hans stopped in his tracks and turned around, and the oddest thing happened. His eyes went straight to Elsa's face, but to my surprise, his gaze flitted past her for just a moment to look over her shoulder. Right where I happened to be standing. For one single heartbeat, it appeared as if we were looking directly at each other, as if he could see me. Before I could be sure, though, his eyes were back on Elsa. I could have imagined the whole thing.

"There is one thing you might be able to do for me," Elsa said.

"Anything," he replied. There was that puppy-dog look again.

"Princess Anna, my sister, is in the town and probably doesn't know what has happened. You'd be doing me a huge favor if you could find her and inform her about the queen."

"I'd be happy to tell your sister the news."

"Just try not to get too lost in the town," Elsa teased. I stared at her for a moment, stunned at her playfulness. She usually saved remarks like these for Anna and Anna alone.

"I've been doing much better actually, but I suppose it wouldn't hurt if you could show me around again later. At sunset, perhaps?" He was persistent. I had to give him that.

"We'll see," she answered ambiguously before closing the door. After it had clicked shut, she stood still for several more seconds, smiled, and made a sound that was somewhere between a sigh and a chuckle. Then, she turned around and caught me staring. "What?"

Anna

I may not have been allowed to kiss Kristoff in public, but I made sure to hold onto him as tight as I could as we walked arm in arm towards the bridge across the fjord where he was to join the other ice harvesters and lead them to the mountains. There weren't many other people there other than the wives and children of the other workers. I knew most of them by name, and at this point, they were all familiar with my relationship with Kristoff, but because of the proximity to the waking streets of Corona, we had to keep things very formal.

I stood by as Kristoff double-checked the supplies of everyone in his group and made sure Sven was fastened to the sleigh correctly. This was going to be an important trip for him. As winter approached, the paths became treacherous, and the demand for ice decreased dramatically, so this was going to be one of his last big trips. I knew that it was going to be a while before I would see him again, but I still smiled, knowing that afterward, I would have him all to myself.

"You have to come back to me as fast as possible," I told him. "No exceptions." He opened his mouth to make some sarcastic remark, but I shouted, "None!"

We both laughed, but then he grew pensive for just a moment, staring at me earnestly. "Anna," he began, "I love you."

"I love you, too," I said, smiling at the fact that he wasn't even trying to lower his voice.

Suddenly, he started looking very awkward, fidgeting with his hat as he tried to find the right words to say. "It's just that I never thought I would ever meet someone like you, someone who turns my whole life upside down and I don't really mind, and-"

"Kristoff!" one of the men called, interrupting the moment. "Are you ready to go?"

"In just a minute!" he responded.

"And what?" I pressed.

Kristoff blushed, swallowing whatever he was about to say. "And I'll see you real soon. I promise."

"Alright. Goodbye." I held onto his hand just as long as I could until he climbed into his sleigh and took off. In a matter of minutes, he had shrunk into nothing more than a pinprick in the distance, and as I waved and let my hand fall, I couldn't help but feel a little lonelier without him.

Fortunately, I gained new company soon enough. Prince Hans approached me only moments later on his horse, calling, "Princess Anna!"

"Anna," I corrected once he had come to a halt in front of me. I noted his worried expression. "What's wrong?"

"I'm afraid that the Queen has collapsed," he informed me. "Princess Elsa sent me to tell you."

"Take me to her!" I demanded, but Prince Hans only shook his head.

"She's resting now and won't take any visitors, but your sister promised me that she is being well taken care of. She is currently running the kingdom in the Queen's absence."

"Oh," I said, deflating even more. I felt helpless. Kristoff was gone, Elsa was busy, and my mother had fallen ill, and there was nothing I could do. This didn't go unnoticed by Prince Hans."

"Anna," he began in a more sympathetic tone, "would you like me to escort you back home?"

I gave him a sad smile. "I would like that very much. Thank you, Prince Hans."

"Just Hans, if you prefer."

"Thank you, Hans." He helped me up onto his horse like a gentleman before mounting it himself, and we set off at a gentle trot back to the castle, taking the scenic route around the town. It certainly helped to get my mind off of everything.

We rode into the courtyard and allowed the servants to take his horse back to the stables. Hans turned to me before I could thank him again and leave. "I know this is odd, Anna, but I was wondering if you might take some time to walk with me through the castle gardens. I hope you don't mind."

All I really wanted to do was see Elsa or Mother or Dad, but since none of them seemed available to talk to me, I ended up agreeing to his request. "May I ask why?" I inquired as he offered me his arm, which I gratefully accepted.

"Your sister promised to see me later, and I wanted to ask you a few questions before then. We haven't really spent a lot of time together, have we?"

"Not outside of dance lessons, no," I said. As we entered the garden, a stiff breeze blew, rustling the leaves over our heads and pushing the clouds in front of the sun. I shivered. "It's getting chilly out."

I felt Hans shrug. "Really? I hadn't noticed."

"You've been spending too much time with Elsa," I joked.

"Perhaps, but it never feels like enough," he sighed.

"Don't worry. I think she's warming up to you. Get it? Get it? That was a joke. I'll stop now," I told him awkwardly. He stopped to laugh.

"You have got to be the most positive person I have ever met!" he exclaimed.

"I try. Someone in my family has to be, you know?"

Hans gave me a sympathetic look. "Is there anything you want to talk about, Anna? I know you must be stressed."

I shook my head. "Only things I don't want to think about," I replied.

"Maybe I can help take your mind off of it?" he offered.

"Like a game?"

"Sure. Like a game," he agreed, sounding somewhat wary of the idea.

I flashed my most mischievous smile. "Tag! You're it!" I tapped him on the elbow before running away from him as fast as I could. I hadn't done anything like this in ages, and it felt so good. I hadn't realized how much I had missed the sun on my face and the breeze in my hair, and I didn't care how inappropriate my behavior was for a princess. I kicked off my shoes and I kept running.

I paused near a hedge when I had finally run out of breath, thinking that I had to have lost him. I tossed my head back and laughed, but all of a sudden, I felt arms around my waist, and my feet left the ground. After spinning me around once, Hans set me back down, and I stumbled in my dizziness. He chuckled, also out of breath. "Tag! That was fun, but maybe we should take it easy before someone sees."

I pretended to think about it for a moment before rushing forward and tagging him again. He rolled his eyes and followed me until we came to a small tree. The gardeners hadn't trimmed it recently, so there were plenty of low hanging branches that I took to climbing almost immediately. Hans stayed at the base and called up to me, "Anna, you really shouldn't be up there!"

"Why? Because it's not proper?" I teased. I'd had it with propriety. Kristoff wasn't there, and Hans certainly wasn't my consort, so what was the point in it anyway.

"You're going to get hurt!"

"Yeah, right. It's perfectly safe." I stood up on a branch to prove my point, only for a loud snap to interrupt my adrenaline high. The branch jolted underneath my feet, throwing me to the ground. I would have broken an arm or a leg if Hans hadn't been there to catch me. We were both quiet for a moment as we tried to catch our breath.

"Wow," he finally said.

"Yeah," I breathed. After a moment, I realized we were staring at each other weirdly, and I shifted out of his arms. "I guess I know I can trust you." I busied myself by brushing off my skirt.

"Maybe we should take a break," he suggested, directing me over to a small bench. I grabbed my boots on the way over and began putting them on once I had sat down.

"What did you want to ask about?" I said to break the silence once I had finished.

"Oh, I was just wondering if there was anything I might get your sister. Candy? Flowers? Just something that might brighten up her day."

"Chocolate and roses," I answered almost immediately.

"Really? That's it?"

"Well, we both love chocolate, especially the truffles from the vendor on the square, and roses have always been her favorite. Mine, too," I explained.

"You two are really close, huh? Have you always been that way?" he inquired.

"Yeah. Always," I lied. I tried to give a lighthearted chuckle, but it came out sounding nervous, instead. Hans seemed to see right through it, but he didn't comment. I stood. "I should go get cleaned up again. I hope everything goes well tonight."

"Thank you, Anna. I should probably go into town to get those things for tonight."

I nodded and began heading back inside, but after a moment, I paused and turned around, saying, "This was fun. We should do it again, sometime."

"I couldn't agree more."

I caught myself smiling as I walked away, my worries from before seemingly forgotten. I caught myself smiling again when I returned to my room that night only to find it empty, as Elsa was out with Hans, but at the foot of my bed, a servant had left a small box of truffles and a single rose. On top was a note written in Hans' regal scrawl that simply said, "Thanks."

(This was one of those chapters that started out as filler and fluff and stuff and suddenly became much longer than originally intended, so sorry about the delay. I can't say it won't happen again. I don't have too much to say about this one, other than the fact that we're finally seeing a little more of poor Rapunzel, so I might as well address a few of the reviews on the last chapter, which I loved, by the way. Yes, I was making an OUAT reference with the sword fighting because I loved that addition to Anna's character in the show. No, I don't have any plans on bringing Marshmallow into this story. I've kind of avoided discussing Elsa's power to spontaneously create life ever since the first Frozen Family, and I also wouldn't know where to squeeze him or Olaf in, as much as I love the two of them. Lastly, I will tell you that I have no plans on having Pitch and Elsa get together, but their strange relationship or whatever it is will be brought up at some point, so I guess you'll just have to wait and see. Fave, follow, and review!)