The evening of mourning turned into a night of great celebration. A celebration for the lives of those who had been sent to live with the spirits. Music, singing and dancing filled the Northuldran village. Anna had not yet returned to Arendelle, for how could she with such a great celebration? Not only for the lives of the Northuldran who had been lost but for her soldiers as well. Her eyes sparked with wonder and her heart filled with the emotion of those around her.
Elsa found herself a bit perplexed by the sight, she had always thought mourning was something dark and cold. Sad and lonely. But to see the people around her letting out their grief with such beauty was truly soul-healing.
"Come on!" Honeymaren took hold of Elsa's wrist, her own heart reaching out into the voices of her people singing into the spirit realm.
"No, I-"
"Yes, you do." Honeymaren pulled her into the circle, her fingers twining tightly as they began to move in step with those around them.
"I don't understand…" Elsa moved outside of her command, her brows furrowed as her body, and perhaps with a little help from Gale, began to relax and move to the song of the people around her.
"Mourning isn't just about being sad." Honeymaren pulled her closer so that her words would not to be lost, "It's about celebrating the moments that were shared."
"Would you like to dance?" Ryder bowed obnoxiously low, so low that he stumbled just a bit making Anna giggle.
"I don't know how. Not this way. Could you show me?" Anna was near vibrating with excitement but she turned her head to Kristoff hoping that his feelings wouldn't be hurt by the gesture. His smile reminded her that his love was not fragile and she quickly took Ryder's hand into her own.
The night continued to grow long. The music and singing turning into small moments around the fires. A time to tell stories of those that were lost and remember what they taught you.
"A small drink, to remember." Applen had come around to the small group who were sat sipping the last of the hot chocolate. His face was flushed from the liquid that he held in his hand, his stern face was completely relaxed.
"Oh, thank you." Elsa raised her empty mug politely, the liquid looked like water and she didn't see any harm.
"Me too, please." Anna raised her now hastily drained mug as well when he came further around the circle.
"Thank you." Honeymaren raised her own mug, though it wasn't empty she was curious to see what the mixture would taste like and was surprised when he poured just a little too much into her cup. The mixture nearly reached the top but her narrowed eyes went unnoticed as he continued to give Ryder and Kristoff some as well before walking a bit on a tilt back towards the fire he'd come from.
Elsa took a well over-sized sip of what she had expecting to be water, the liquid burning down the back of her throat with startling intensity to which she let out a sharp cough and widened her eyes. Honeymaren giggled softly beside her and Elsa turned her head to watch the younger woman take a small measured sip. Her lips pursed a little but when the heat settled into her stomach she was beginning to no longer care about the dull pulsing along her shoulders.
Anna was about to do the same, nearly tilting the entire cup to her face before Kristoff had stopped her. The young Queen hiccuped and blinked making a face that was truly not befitting of her status, "What is that?"
"Something to help you remember, and something to help you forget." Ryder said with a cheeky grin as he too took a measured sip.
"I have something to remember," Honeymaren let out a soft sigh, leaning in just a bit closer to Elsa's side as her body relaxed, "The day we were taught about the forest. About the mist and how it came to be. The day that Mattais and his soldiers came to ask for our help. Yelena taught us, that sometimes you have to trust your enemy if you want to achieve the same goals."
Ryder nodded reverently, "I remember, the day the forest mist came down." He turned to Anna then, "How even though, you can lose everything, it's possible for someone to do the right thing. Mattais had been protecting that dam, protecting the people of Arendelle. He made that choice with you, Anna."
Anna smiled softly, her hand coming to her heart for a moment before she looked down feeling as though it was some how her turn, "I remember…Yelena's staff…" Anna didn't want to think about it, she had really done her best to try and block that day out, but whatever was in her cup wasn't making it easy, "She protected me…" A slow breath filled her chest, "I learned in that moment, that love can come in different forms." Anna raised her mug and with a wince downed the rest as she'd seen Ryder and Honeymaren do after they'd finished speaking. Her body gave a wobbled shiver and her vision tilted just a bit and she leaned into Kristoff even more.
"I remember Mattais' words to me before he left with Anna…He taught me…That loyalty and bravery are not all that make a man. You need strength, patience and trust." Kristoff pressed a kiss down onto the top of Anna's head, the second placed chastely on her lips before he raised his mug and downed the rest of his drink as well. "
Elsa could feel their eyes slowly coming to her and her back pulsed again as she tried to sit up just a bit straighter. There were so many things she remembered about Yelena and even Mattais but there was another that was also worth remembering, "I remember…the face of fear…" She closed her eyes tight for a long moment, pushing the memory of when she'd first ran into Agnire in the forest away for another, "Gentle hands…" She nodded to herself, "That even if your life has been unkind to you…That doesn't mean you have to be unkind…" A warm arm wrapped around her lower back and she readily leaned into it, "Agnire…reminded me of that…" Before the emotion became too thick, Elsa swallowed down the rest of drink in her hand. Like Anna, her body gave a heavy shiver and she couldn't stop herself from pressing her suddenly very warm forehead against Honeymaren's shoulder. The sudden desire to be alone, to protect herself rose and Elsa began coming to her feet, "I'm sorry, I just…"
Honeymaren didn't hold her down, rather she let her arms come heavily to her sides, she knew where Elsa wanted to go, where she wanted to be and something inside her knew that she shouldn't go alone. So as Elsa moved to leave, she rose to join her, "We'll be back."
Honeymaren quickly caught up, wrapping her arm hesitantly around Elsa's lower back, and gave those they were leaving behind an encouraging look before following Elsa's lead towards the outlook.
Anna sat up straighter, pulling herself from Kristoff's lap. The heat rising to her cheeks and making her head feel wonderfully light, "Where are they going?" She'd missed whatever part of the conversation that would have given her a clue as her faculties were otherwise occupied.
"Wouldn't worry." Ryder cleared his throat and decided to lighten the mood again, "So did I ever tell you about the one time I tried to ride a reindeer upside down?"
As they neared the path that would lead them up towards the outlook Elsa found herself growing more and more uncomfortable. An odd sort of itching sensation was slowly creeping its way out from her shoulder and it was becoming even harder to focus on putting one step in front of the other. Her brow was so tight in concentration that she hadn't even heard Honeymaren speak. That was until the other had come to stand in front of her pulling them to a gentle stop.
"Elsa?"
"Uh, I'm sorry…What did you say?" Elsa tried to pull herself straight but that odd fluttering feeling had returned when Honeymaren placed her hand over the arm wrapped around her stomach.
"I said…you don't look well." Her eyes gave her another once over, before she pressed the back of her fingers against Elsa's flushed cheek.
"I don't feel well…" It took a lot of strength to mutter those words, but the small space between the trees and the look of the woman before her had made her feel safe.
"Perhaps…you should go back to your home…?" Honeymaren knew that Elsa felt safest inside her bedroom, for reasons she couldn't understand and all she wanted at that moment was make sure the night ended on happier note, a peaceful note, "Come on…I'll go with you…"
Elsa nodded softly, leaning just a little into her hold as they changed their course. Her hand slipped under her dress as they walked, her nails curling into the soft flesh of her shoulder making it burn.
oOo
"Okay…I think that's enough for you." Kristoff pulled the mug away from Anna who was now laying almost completely limp over his lap. Her head resting on the log at an awkward angle as she'd tried to follow the cup that was taken away from her.
"You're not fun…he said we had to drink and forget! Tha's tha's what I'm doing…" Why were words suddenly so hard?
"No, what you're doing is going to make yourself sick." Kristoff pulled her up as carefully as he could and put her head down onto his shoulder as he wrapped her legs around his side, "I think it's time for bed."
"No…" Anna whined heavily but her eyes were already starting to close beyond her command. She could swear she heard laughing, and the dizzying effects of being carried.
"The hut's all yours tonight!" Ryder called out with a barking laugh. He was sure he'd find company else where. Or if not, waking up on the ground didn't sound too bad in present state.
"What does he mean?" Anna slurred into Kristoff's neck, her hands becoming a bit more clingy than normal.
Kristoff blushed softly and shook his head pressing another kiss to her brow, "Don't worry about it. Let's just…get out of these clothes…Uh! Into something more comfortable."
"Mm, sounds nice…"
oOo
"Honeymaren?"
"Y-es?" The woman in question had been trying to relax by the fire in the sitting room. The call through the door causing her pensive to pop like a bubble. They had made it into the home without incident and Elsa had promised her that she just needed to take a moment to recollect herself though not before apologizing again for ruining the moment beside the fire. That had been nearly ten minutes ago and the anxiety was already winding up Honeymaren's spine.
"Could…could you help me?"
Elsa's voice sounded strained, this prompted the other woman to move to their feet with enough speed to knock the small table in front of the couch. A sharp hiss left her teeth as her back and leg sparked at the same time but she pushed it aside to move closer to the door. She'd only been gone ten minutes, Elsa had assured her that she'd be alright. Had she been wrong, had something happened?
"Sure, may I come in?" Her bottom lip pulled from her teeth as her hand rested on the door knob, ready to disobey any sort of refusal.
"Please."
Honeymaren opened the door to Elsa's room extremely slowly, her eyes cautiously peeking around the corner of the door as she swallowed down her nerves. A quick look around the space brought her in further, brows furrowed with confusion before a soft huff of frustration came from behind an ornate screen.
"Elsa?" Honeymaren let the door close gently behind her before taking slow steps towards the screen, "Is everything alright?"
"Y-es…" There was a small shuffling before a resigned sigh, "No…"
Honeymaren took another step closer when a softness under toe turned her head down. A weird feeling skittered down her sternum into her stomach when she realized it had been the train attached to her dress she had been wearing. Picking it up on her way she lightly knocked against the screen to denote her presence, "What can I do?"
There was a long silence, a heavy pause accented by only the faintest fabric being ruffled. Honeymaren could hardly breathe through the tension though just before she was sure the air was going to be too thick to breathe, a small hand came around the edge of the screen.
Cautiously, Elsa emerged, her head down, her shoulders tensed to the point of near vibration. She held the scarf that Honeymaren had made for her so tightly her fingers quivered. It covered most of her chest but left her stomach and shoulders bare creating a desert in Honeymaren's mouth. The wrap that her shoulder had been encased in was gone, red fingernail trails rounding over the wounded shoulder where Elsa must have scratched herself. When her eyes lowered outside of her command she inhaled when she should have exhaled, causing a most painful noise to stick in her throat.
The bruising, nearly black, that wrapped completely around her mid-section made her eyes linger. The pants Elsa wore hanging low on her hips, so much so that she could see the definition of muscle over the rounded bone. But what really made her eyes stick, was the intricate pattern that ran along the curve of her waist. Tiny interconnected snowflakes, closing the wound seamlessly, their mark glowing brightly in the moonlight that cast its shadow over the twitching muscles.
"Elsa…" Her words were breathless, her fingers moving outside of her control where the very tips ran along the magically mended skin.
Elsa could hardly hear over the pounding in her chest. Everything that screamed at her to conceal herself. Every prim and proper teaching she'd ever undergone lashing out against a wall that would hear none of it. Her eyes lowered to the fingers that grazed her skin, her chest fluttering when the furious itching feeling ceased along her spine. A heavy swallow raised her head and an icy breath formed in front of her.
The wisp of condensed air caught Honeymaren's eye and she quickly snapped her fingers back into her palm and turned her head up into the face of a woman who appeared as fragile as the element she controlled, "Sorry…I didn't mean to…"
"It's alright." Elsa offered a soft smile from behind her teeth curled lips, "Actually…Could you do it again?" Her voice was barely that of a whisper, voices in her heart giving her the words she could never have thought to speak.
"Again?" Hopeful disbelief.
"Yeah…but…" Elsa took a deep breath and turned away slowly, her back tensing as she pulled her hair over her shoulder and out of the way. The coolness of the room raising the muscles along her spine into tight cords that only twisted tighter when a sharp gasp hit her ears, "Here?"
Awe was the only thing that registered on Honeymaren's face, the sheer beauty behind the darkness. The moonlight catching so brilliantly over the ridges while the deep shadows of bruising tried and failed to take away its splendor. Her eyes tracked up to the long marks that she had seen before, her eyes taking in a similar pattern over the arrow and spear wounds. They too were completely closed as though nothing had ever happened. As though she'd never seen struck down by an arrow destined to rid the world of magic. Though what was more than all of that, what was more than anything she could have possibly dreamed of, was beautifully large intricate work of art that was the crystal white snowflake that shone in the moon's rays.
Her fingers rose again, this time tracing along one of the rimes, her eyes taking every detail into permanent memory. The small ridges of healed skin at their tips did nothing to take away from the sheer complex beauty before her. As she continued her path, the muscles beneath began to relax and so did her breath. Her feet bringing her just a step closer that the warmth from her chest raised soft bumps along Elsa's snow white skin.
"It's beautiful…"
Elsa hadn't known how close Honeymaren had come until she'd felt her words against the back of her neck. A thick swallow tilting it just enough to see the concentration on her face from the corner of her eye. The insensate itching was gone once again as though it had been merely a means to bring them closer together. Her eyes closed as she pushed away all thought. Her brows relaxing as her body unknowingly arched backwards with a small sway that brought fingertips into palms.
Honeymaren let her fingers spread out slowly, her nails lightly tracing over the red angry lines left behind by Elsa's attempts. The more she reached, the lower Elsa's head became, until it was barely propped up by her shoulder. It was in that moment where she found herself leaning forward, as though pulled by another, her lips lightly grazing along the center rime, while her fingers ran down.
Elsa suddenly felt as though she'd caught a fever. Her entire body sparked and sputtered, her back straightening as the itching feeling was replaced with a heat, a soothing heat, but an unexpected heat non-the-less. Her chest suddenly heaved, as though she could no longer bring air into her lungs and her body felt dreadfully heavy, "Honeymaren…?"
"Sorry…I'm-I'm sorry." Honeymaren pulled back as though her words had slapped her. Though they held no malice of any kind she found herself just as confused as Elsa at what she'd done. She hadn't meant to, but it had seemed so right. And yet…
"No…no it's okay." Elsa turned her head slowly trying to see Honeymaren's face, "I just…I suddenly…feel really warm and…"
"Maybe you should lie down…" She could feel the redness on her cheeks, the heat that ran down her neck but the innocence that looked back at only stirred the butterflies in her stomach.
"Yes…okay…" Elsa's words felt like a distant dream. Her body turning inside the command of another. She had no idea what Honeymaren had done, not truly; nor what she had referred to in terms of beauty. She could only guess that the same markings she'd found on her waist had appeared on her back as well. She'd discovered in her scratching that the wounds on her back had been sealed—well, the ones that she could reach. Though it had seemed like the more she'd tried to sate that burning feeling, the more it had spread. Escalating her into the situation she found herself in now.
Honeymaren moved to turn down the bed while out of the corner of her eye she could see Elsa retrieving her shirt and stepping back behind the screen for a short moment. A heavy stone laid in her stomach but she wouldn't let it ruin the moment. When Elsa came to stand beside her, another smile was shared, "You should rest…"
"Join me?" Elsa knew only one thing in that moment, and that was she didn't want to be alone. Not on this night. Not after she'd recounted everything that had happened, leaving it fresh in her mind. No, she was sure she didn't want to be alone.
"Of course." Honeymaren idly wrung her hands as Elsa crawled her way onto the soft surface. As Elsa adjusted to make room for her, Honeymaren lowered herself down to remove her boots, once finished she reached for the hem of her heavier outer tunic and pulled it without a thought over her head. Her thinner under tunic riding up her back exposing her own wound. She grimaced at her stupidity thinking that she should have stood behind that screen thing instead.
Thankfully, Elsa had turned her head away, her eyes looking up at the moon that shined as though nothing had happened. As though the world had not fallen beneath it's very eyes. It had been pure instinct for her to do so. A politeness, a courtesy. As silly as it sounded.
"Are you still okay?" Honeymaren had long since been battling against Elsa's aversion to touch. Gently, patiently, lovingly. This felt like they'd jumped well past a simple caress and straight into dangerous waters and she knew how much Elsa disliked swimming.
Elsa too was feeling well outside of her comfort zone, though as she wrapped the sheet closer to her chest she felt a little more assured. This was her friend. She was safe there beside her. There was nothing to fear with her being so near, "Yes. I'm fine." A soft smile and another adjustment of her hair exposing the rise of her shoulder as she turned to lay on her side.
"Are you sure…?" Honeymaren didn't want to over step any bounds, as desperately as she wanted to join her, she didn't want to seem too eager, too possessive.
"Of course." Elsa shifted just a little more and offered her an oblivious smile.
With no room left to argue, Honeymaren slipped into the bed. Unlike the time before when she'd been unable to ask for permission, when she'd just done what she felt was right, this felt more real, less like a dream or a chance of circumstance. This felt like a true invitation.
"Do you want me to…?" Her eyes ran the rise and fall of her side, her hand making a small motion to try and get her point across.
Elsa smiled again, a heat running up the back of her neck, "Please…" The itchiness had returned, but not as fierce as before, rather a small warning, a little push to make her decision.
Honeymaren smiled and brought herself even closer, adjusting herself as she had that night, rising up onto the pillows while tucking her arm beneath Elsa's pillow. The elder woman responded in kind, only this time, her arms wrapped around, her fingertips lightly running down her shoulder blades. A small shiver ran through Honeymaren's whole body at the contact.
"Are you cold?" Elsa made to pull her arm back, as though fearful of something she might of done but the hand that came to stop her was connected to a reassuring smile.
"No, just settling down." Honeymaren pulled her arm back around and crossed hers over top. Her fingertips cautiously running under the hem of Elsa's shirt to help ease the muscles there. Another shift placed her palm flat against the small of her back and she let her fingernails draw lazy patterns over the bruise-heated skin. Then, as a last soothing measure, the arm that rest under Elsa's pillow curled around far enough to run her finger over the bridge of her nose, a magic all Northuldran women knew.
Elsa felt the weight of the day slowly lifting, despite how uncomfortable their initial exchange had been. She was more than confident in her ability to withstand the affection afforded to her now. It had been a bold step, one that she was sure she'd never had made on her own.