Anna peeked up at Kristoff as she rested on his bare chest, ensuring her husband was asleep. She smiles at his sleeping form, even when he was resting her Kristoff was handsome. The Queen subtly moves off of him, something she hardly did after they finished their lovemaking.
She carefully removes the blankets off of her as she sits up in their bed, swinging her feet off of it and standing up. Anna grabs her dressing gown as she tiptoes away from their bed into her stateroom attached to their bedroom. She quietly closes the large door connecting the two rooms, holding her breath when it clunks shut. Anna approaches the turquoise French-style sofa, pausing before she steps up onto it. She takes a deep breath as she wiggles her toes against the upholstery, thinking back to her conversation with Gerda earlier that day.
Gerda had come into the stateroom mid-afternoon to bring the Queen her tea and chocolate. Anna was slumped over her desk, absentmindedly signing documents as she had been doing for hours.
"You really should take a break, your Majesty, you look tired." The older woman recommends as she places the tray next to Anna. The Queen puts down her quill with a sigh.
"Gerda…I have a question regarding…well…babies."
"Babies your Majesty?" Gerda furrows her brow at the young woman she had helped raise from a baby.
"Well it's just after last night at the ball, I overheard many women talking about babies…and how once they fell pregnant their husbands lost interest in them. And I'm wondering well how to prevent…that."
"How to prevent your husband from losing interest in you?" Gerda asks, confused at the question.
"Yes…well…no…how to prevent from falling pregnant." Anna says, her face heating up as she said the words out loud. As she was saying it out loud, it felt ridiculous to be bringing this up to a woman who never had her own children. She would've asked Elsa; except she hadn't seen her sister for two weeks and Anna knew she was busy up North. Gerda softly smiles at the Queen, pouring her tea and handing it to her on the saucer.
"You know your Majesty; everyone knows how much the Prince Consort loves you. I doubt very much that he would lose interest in you if you were to fall pregnant." Gerda says, trying to offer words of comfort to the new bride.
Anna's gaze burrows at her ink-stained hands which held her teacup. Rationally she knew Kristoff's interest in her wouldn't waiver when she fell pregnant. But what if the women turned out to be right?
"I know that…I just…" Anna sighs, trying to compose herself. "Kristoff and I have been only married for three months. I don't want any of that to change…at least not yet maybe for a year or so."
"Well, your Majesty I have to admit I am inexperienced in these matters." Gerda responds, tidying up around Anna's desk.
"I see…" Anna says, obviously disappointed. Perhaps she would have to pay a visit to Yelena and ask if she knew of anyways which would prevent pregnancy.
"But I have heard things from some of the village women." Gerda reassuringly puts a hand over Anna's, speaking in a whispered voice to the young Queen.
Anna holds onto the back of the couch to balance herself, once doing so she lets go. She bends her knees, bouncing slightly on the couch. She stops as she falls off balance, grabbing the back again. The young woman regains her balance, once more letting go of the back. Anna begins to jump on the surface, quietly counting to herself.
"one, two, three, four, five…" She felt rather silly as a 22-year-old woman jumping on the couch as she once had as a child. Anna finds herself losing count a number of times, having to restart from the beginning. By the third time she resolves to let it be the last time. In her concentration, she doesn't hear the connecting door open or the sound of heavy footsteps making their way towards her.
"Anna?" Kristoff's questioning voice echoes through the room. Anna stops her action, losing count again. Anna turns towards the door to see her husband standing close to the couch.
"Hi Honey, what are you doing up?" Anna asks, embarrassment creeping over her.
"I shifted and found I was able to move around in the bed more freely than usual. What are you doing?" Kristoff steps closer to her, standing in front of the sofa coming nearly eye-to-eye with his wife. Anna looks down at her hands, starting to pick at the skin around her thumb.
"Well…It's just…well…" Anna stutters, feeling stupid now that she had to explain it. "It's something Gerda told me about to well…keep things the way they are."
"Keep things the way they are?" Kristoff questions, putting his hands in hers to stop her nervous tick.
"To uh…keep us from having a baby." Anna clarifies. Kristoff's brows knit together at her confession.
"I thought you wanted to have a baby."
"I do! I really do…but eventually. This would only to put it off for a year or so."
"Anna…I don't think this is an effective way to prevent pregnancy." Kristoff sighs, unlocking his hands from hers to wrap his arms around her waist.
"You don't?" Anna asks, beginning to bite her lip. Feeling stupid about this whole thing now. Kristoff's gaze softens at his wife, pulling her flush against him.
"No. If you really want to put off a family, we could always go visit Elsa in the forest and see if Yelena has any ways to prevent you from falling with child."
"But it could be months before we can get to the forest." Anna states, Kristoff hums in agreement. "And I won't ask Elsa to bring anything down for us."
"Well…then there is only one way to ensure our unions won't produce a child that I know of."
"There is?" Anna asks, almost too enthusiastically. At her response, Kristoff almost felt bad for getting her hopes up.
"Yeah…" Kristoff says.
"Wait…Kristoff, please don't tell me what I think you going to say." Anna pleads, hoping they were going to go back to this.
"Abstinence." Kristoff replies. With his response, Anna groans burying her head into his shoulder.
"I thought you meant a real method." Anna's complaint becomes muffled by his shoulder. Kristoff lets out a low chuckle before picking Anna up bridal style back to their bedroom. He sets her in the middle of their large four-poster bed before crawling on the side he normally slept on.
Anna came to rest on his chest again, her fingers playing with his chest hair. Kristoff closes his eyes, his embrace tightening around Anna.
"I don't want to abstain." Anna finally says, unsure if it was the proper use of the word. Kristoff opens his eye, staring at his young wife and brushes his fingers through her hair.
"No?" Kristoff asks, his gaze darkening at her suggestion. Anna shakes her head, biting her lip once more. "Well then, We won't." Kristoff sits up, guiding Anna to lay on her back as he shifts to hover over her, his eyes burrowing into hers. A giggle emitting from Anna as Kristoff begins to kiss her neck.