Chapter 29.
Arendelle Summer 1868
Three months passed and Elsa started to show. It was the start of July and unfortunately, it was the summer months which meant Jack was down south for winter. Elsa barely saw him. June went by and the only support Elsa had was from her sister Anna. Oscar wasn't in Sweden when he got the news. Oscar and his family were down in Denmark. It was here that Oscar gave his sister, Freja, away for her marriage to the King of Denmark, their first cousin- third son of their mother's second oldest brother. Freja inside did not want to marry him but unlike Elsa- who said no and cried over marrying Oscar- Freja accepted the proposal knowing this was her place in life and she had no other purpose.
With the veil covering her face, she and Oscar made their way down the aisle. Her older brother then whispered:
"You are to make him happy. Supply him with all the needs necessary to make him happy."
"I will brother." Freja did not flinch as they walked down the aisle, Oscar giving the crowd smiles.
"That includes sexually, little sister. I don't care if you love him or not, you either sleep with him or I'll tie you to that bed for him to ride you all he wants. Do you understand?"
"Yes, your majesty."
"Good. Now, if I hear you're not fucking him, I know some good brothels that would pay good money for you. I will let every man fuck you and become a whore before you disgrace this family by not consummating this marriage."
Freja said nothing. This wasn't new to her. Her brother had been threatening her to sleep with their cousin- her near husband- and Freja quickly figured out it was only because Elsa and Oscar didn't consummate their marriage. As a girl, she just slightly nodded before being kissed by Oscar on the cheek (and a few threatening whispers into her ear) and given over to her husband to be.
The Danish wedding had ended as quickly it had started. They began to celebrate the wedding when a man came up to Oscar. He whispered into his ear and Oscar looked at him bewildered. Taking the letter the man had in his hand, he tore it open to read the contents. The letter had been sent from Norway to Sweden. Since he wasn't there in Sweden, they forwarded it to Denmark.
Lærke smiled as she watched her first daughter with her husband and returned to Oscar's side, seeing the face he was pulling. She looked on the outside of the letter he held in her hand where she saw the Norway crest on it and sighed.
"What does your Queen want now?" her words leaked with irritation.
"Elsa's with child." Oscar muttered and turned to his mother.
Lærke's face turned into the same expression as her son. Snatching the letter out of his hand, she read over it and gasped.
"Oh my God."
"Yep."
"About time!"
The two looked at each other and their faces lit up. They laughed and hugged each other. This is what they've been waiting for. Lærke was about to have her first grandchild. She could tell it was going to be a beautiful baby as Elsa herself was known for being the Scandinavian beauty. Her daughter, Freja was known as being the second Scandinavian beauty and Anna was third.
Oscar stood up and with a cup of red wine. Lærke lifted her cup of wine up and began to clink her spoon onto it, catching everyone's attention. Hushes were shared among many until all was silent and ready to listen to Oscar's speech.
"Today, I have lots to celebrate for. First off, my sister Freja has married dear cousin Bent, may you live a long and happy life with your children and grandchildren." Claps were made but Oscar still wasn't finished. "There's another reason why I'm happy. As I've sure you've noticed, my wife Queen Elsa of Arendelle isn't here. I didn't know why myself but I just got news that indeed, we are now expecting. Here's to the future and our children!"
Many people raised their glasses and 'oohed' and 'congratulations' before tipping the red wine down their throats. Right after the news, Oscar got a separate boat from his mother Lærke, Gustaf and Saga. While they headed straight back home to Sweden, Oscar headed to Norway.
...
Elsa sat in the room they were preparing being the new baby's nursery. It was empty and the walls weren't painted yet. Instead, it was just a washed white. The floor planks needed fixed and the only thing the sat inside was the old rocking chair their mother Mary used to rocking Elsa and Anna as children. Elsa sat on their chair frequently and rocked herself backwards and forwards while staring out at the sunny morning. Her hands rested on her bump and she cradled what she thought was nothing more than a monster. Even if she did feel like it was a monster, somehow being in the dusty room, sitting on the rocking chair and staring out the window gave her peace in mind.
With the pregnancy, she found herself more tired. Elsa went to bed early and took naps and sometimes she'd even rock herself to sleep on the rocking chair. Elsa often got headaches from all her work and so the small council took over her work to give her a break considering she could be hold the (hopefully) future king inside her. Every morning she threw up much to her discomfort. Usually Jack was there in the mornings so helped by holding up her hair and rubbing her back. The cooks in the kitchen made small- but healthy- meals for Elsa as she was always craving food every hour. They had to nearly always change the food as Elsa would be turned off by a few foods which just made her sick from smelling their scent. She suffered from many more things too but no matter how bad it got, she did not complain. Obviously, Elsa got mad with a few hormones giving her mood swings but she did not complain about being with child; she did that inside her head.
There was a knock on the door. Even you know it was slight knocks, to Elsa, it felt like someone was bashing her head in with a hammer. Groaning she called out:
"Come in."
The door opened. Elsa didn't turn to see who was at first, but upon hearing no movement or words she faced the person. To her shock and horror, it was Oscar. She didn't know what to say. Elsa hadn't seen him since the incident that caused her to be with child, to be in this state! Elsa glared at Oscar. If looks could kill, Oscar would have been high fived. In the face. With a chair. Made of steel. Twice.
The look was not missed nor ignored. Oscar gulped and pulled at his collar feeling hot and sweaty suddenly. The room around them froze and when the door closed behind him, the ice stiffened it in place so it was impossible to escape. Elsa rose with her hand protecting the baby. Even if she didn't want the baby, there was always a sudden need to protect the baby- like a mother's instinct. It perhaps came with the whole being with child phase.
"What do you want?" Elsa hissed over to her husband.
"Look, Elsa. I'm really-"
"You're not welcomed her no more."
Oscar rubbed the back of his neck. His eyes then focused on her swollen abdomen. Immediately, eyes filled with tears and he dropped to his knees. Elsa watched in shocked at this. Of all things the reactions Oscar could have chosen, this reaction wasn't on her list. Oscar looked up at her confused pools of blue and he held out his hands.
"Can I?"
Unable to deny, Oscar walked over on his knees and hesitantly placed his hands on the bump. He petted the bump and ran his fingers from top to bottom and left or right. Carefully, he placed his ear to the filled uterus and closed his eyes. He didn't really expect to hear anything but just the thought that his future son (hopefully) was inside waiting for him made him happy.
"I'm sorry." Oscar muttered. He parted from the growing baby and looked up at Elsa. "I am so sorry. I was drunk and I was stupid. Never had I meant to do this to you. Never."
Elsa stared, not knowing how to react.
"It's just that...I've always wanted a son. A child I can proudly say is mine. When you denied me this, I just...got so depressed that I drank my sorrows away till the point I was out of my mind and had no control. I know this baby wasn't conceived the way we wanted it to be but..." he stopped.
He didn't know how to end it. So he decided to change the subject. He got off on his knees and took held of Elsa's hands and placed them to his chest. Elsa could feel his heart beat thump against the rib cage.
"We never got on. We never loved each other. We both did what we thought was right but...if you forgive me, I promise to help you out with the following months. I will refuse to leave until the baby has safely arrived. I may not be your love, but I want to be your companion, a friend. A great father for the child of ours. Then hopefully, if you have me, we can have many more children. Even if you don't forgive me, I'm still keeping all these promises but it would be easier on both of us if you simply agreed."
Elsa didn't know how to respond. Was it a trick? Was he playing a game with her? The man who raped her was begging for forgiveness? Something just didn't seem right. As much as she wanted to deny him, she couldn't. She knew she couldn't. Either way this was going to be their future child's father. This was going to be Elsa and Oscar's child. There was a sense of pain that was hidden inside his voice and words. Maybe if Elsa played along with the game she could get to the bottom of it. Lightly, Elsa nodded her head.
Oscar's face lit up as if someone struck a match in front of his face (and Elsa shocked it in his face watching it burn) but he grabbed her arms. Holding her tightly, he kissed her deeply on the lips before dropping to his knees and kissing the baby. In tears, he wrapped his arms around Elsa and rested his head on the baby. Elsa in complete shock, joined him by crying along too. She rested her hands; one of the baby bump and one of Oscar's head. Slowly, the ice around the room began to melt away.
...
August came round the corner. Elsa had finished her first trimester and was onto the second one. With in the first week of August, Elsa no longer got morning sickness- which was a relief for her. Instead though, everything ached when she moved. When waking up in the morning, she could barely move. Oscar lay with her in bed and woke up to the painful whimpers Elsa released.
Setting her onto her side, he gave her good massages. His fingers went in deep, letting loose of all the knots in her back and thighs. It was like he knew just where to put his magical hands and helped Elsa unwind and relax. This made Elsa smile in the morning. At the end of the night, when Elsa couldn't sleep, Oscar would come in and do the exact same thing. Warmth sent the stress out and Elsa would fall asleep and have a great nights sleep, all thanks to Oscar.
Elsa during the second trimester began to hate her appearance. Just the bulge made her feel fat even you know she wasn't- it wasn't fat but a person inside her. Blue lines streaked her skin as it stretched out over the baby causing Elsa to curse upon herself. Every time she looked in the mirror and cradled the baby, Oscar would come up behind her and wrap his arms around her and whisper, "Trust me, you're just as beautiful as you were before the baby. They don't call you the Scandinavian beauty for nothing you know. I'm just lucky to have you in my arms."
Slowly and surely, Elsa's hate for Oscar drifted away. Instead, trust formed and a bond. Elsa convinced herself it was her hormones acting up. Jack wasn't there to support her as he was out working so she grew attached to Oscar. If it was Jack here, Oscar would still be distant with Elsa. But Jack wasn't there. The only person there for her was Oscar. She couldn't be more thankful.
Arendelle Autumn 1868
Jack arrived with a pile of wild flowers in his hand. He'd been to every country down south and managed to pick up every flower that grew in the winter and froze them. Now that he was in Arendelle, he defrosted them and entered the window of Elsa's bedroom. There, he saw his sleeping beauty taking her nap. He didn't want to disturb her so placed the flowers down by her side. He smiled. She looked so peaceful and...happy. It might of been the sweat that lashed off her but Elsa glowed in the light.
Carefully, he petted her hair and kissed her cheek. She smiled and giggled in her sleep. Elsa rolled over in her sleep, loving the feeling of Jack's fresh breath hit the back of her neck. A tingly sensation travelled down her spine. She hadn't felt something like that sense he left. Jack chuckled and placed a kiss on her tired lips before leaving her. Being with child was hard enough, she needed to rest. Who knows when Elsa will be able to sleep in peace?! He flew out silently to see what mess he could cause in the palace.
"Jack!" Elsa gasped, waking up from her dream.
She rubbed the back of her neck where she swore she felt him. Elsa looked around for a familiar face but none was found. Sighing, she propped herself up on the bed. Her hands hit something that wasn't there from when she first took her nap. Under her left hand was a bunch of exotic flowers. Each one different from the other and each one new to Elsa.
Gasping, she picked them all up and smiled. Beautiful, exquisite, joyful! Getting up, she made her way to the half decorated room. They painted the walls a light shade of blue and added dark blue snowflakes with white snow along the walls. They also managed to get a white chest of drawers in through the wall. Elsa picked up an empty glass vase and filled it with water before putting her new bunch of flowers into it and setting them up on top of the drawers.
Elsa stood back and admired the view. No words were able to describe how she felt right now just looking at them. A light tap came on the door and Oscar walked in with a friendly smile.
Elsa presented Oscar the same smile before walking over and placing her hands around his neck. Osar responded by wrapping his arms around her waist.
"Thank-you." she whispered- meaning the flowers.
"You're welcome." she murmured- thinking it was for the support.
Pulling out of the hug, the two kissed. At that moment Jack flew passed. He stopped. He went back and stared in through the crack of the nursery where he found Elsa with Oscar. Kissing...hands around each other. Obviously Oscar was forcing himself on Elsa again. However, when they parted, Elsa's face did not show disgust or sadness, but happiness, joy...and love.
"What the..." Jack murmured, with his heart in his throat.
Haha! MORE drama! Let the sad and angry reviews commence now! I know you're all gonna come at me with bullets and knives but I also know you won't kill me because I bet you want to know what happens next and if Jack and Elsa will ever have a happy ending. Sorry to disappoint you all with this chapter ;)
Love ya all anyway! 3 xxx
~ChibiNagisaSakura
