Chapter 2

Thank you all who reviewed and are following this story, I'm so encouraged!

Disclaimer: The grandparents in this do not reflect my own grandparents in any way whatsoever, even though I'm having Anna use the same term. Also, because they're Frozen 2 characters. ;) Originally, I had Anna calling them Farfar and Farmor, the Norwegian titles for Grandpa and Grandma.

Also, the narration is 3rd person limited, a narrator that only knows what Anna knows, and in this case basically narrates her thoughts. So not everything narrated is true. (just to clarify)

Anna went to live with other relatives who were now able and willing to foster her. Her paternal grandparents. They were young grandparents; healthy enough to live long after Anna became an adult.

Naturally, they wanted what was best for her, but they didn't seem to want to really understand Anna.

When she first came, she had wanted to cry and cry, but after the first few minutes, Grandpa chastised her for it.

"Now, dry those tears. You'll have a good home with us, Young Lady." He straightened her jacket collar. "And don't slouch."

The term 'Young Lady' was supposed to be one of endearment, and Anna liked it...at first. She imagined herself as an important princess or a grown up in a fancy party dress.

She thought she might be able to stop crying until they drove past a beautiful lake blinking back at her. The lake was one she'd driven past before. With Papa Agnarr and Mama Iduna. And Elsa!

What could she do about it? She missed the Rike family, and the tears were right there beneath her eyes ready to well up. They were supposed to be her family. Papa Agnarr and Mama Iduna were supposed to adopt her; at least that's what Anna began to imagine.

"But Grandpa, I miss them already. Papa Agnarr would always tell me the most exciting stories. And Mama Iduna sang-oh!-so beautiful, and her singing would make me fall asleep right away. In a good way. And Elsa, she said she was-"

"Yes, yes," he interrupted her rambling. "I know they are good people." Yet Anna got a funny feeling when he said that. "And now you will be with family, you'll be going to a good school, and we will even give you a phone. We trust you'll be responsible with it."

She couldn't fully register everything he said because she got stuck on that first part, "...you will be with family." The thought made her more miserable since he indicated that she hadn't been with family before. And because he just told her she would be getting a pretty cool gift, she should smile at him. So did smile at him.

"Thank you, Grandpa and Grandma."

For the rest of the road trip, she stopped talking to either stare out the window at the dark green trees and concrete or to tap her fingers to a rhythm in her head. She did happen to notice when her grandparents shook their head and realized that it was from all of her fidgeting and restlessness.

"When we arrive at home, feel free to play outside," Grandma suggested. Playing outside did sound like a good idea to Anna and maybe riding her bike around their huge yard.

Before the plans with Grandpa and Grandma were finalized, Anna had visited them at their house four times, so she knew how impressive their house looked.

They drove up the hill again and into the driveway, and for the fifth time, Anna gawked at the house. Scattered near the hill were other large houses. The walls of her house were white wood with large windows in the front, and the roof was black and pointy.

Yep. She would be living in a castle, alright.

The Rikes were wealthy too, but they had chosen to live in a smaller home in the city.

"Well, are you going to stay there?" Grandma asked. Anna quickly hopped out of the car in response. "You can play outside or play inside, and I'll call you for dinner."

She ran to her bicycle and stopped in front of it, pretending it was her horse.

"Cake, buddy, let's go for a ride!" She swung her leg over the back like mounting a real horse. "Now let's ride like the wind!"

Now she began racing against the horrible feelings she hated, all trying to catch her and swallow her up. What if the Rike family never came and visited her again? What if they stopped loving her? What if they took in other children?

Well, that was fine by Anna, actually. But would she get to meet them and become like a sister to them? Like Elsa...

No! She couldn't think that way-Elsa and Anna would always be sisters! Anna would still be living with the Rikes if they had permission.

Her bicycle bounced over a rock, and Anna had put one foot on the ground to keep from falling over. The momentum from the topple was too much, and she landed in the grass. No legs or bones or arms or muscles hurt, but she didn't get up.

Something inside her hurt because back at home-at the Rikes-Papa Agnarr might have come over with a bit of concern, noticed she was alright, and said, "And our hero has been knocked to the ground! Let's check, any broken bones? Any battle scars? Anything that needs Chocolate to fix?"

Anna laughed as if it were truly happening.

Or Mama Iduna might run over, scared first, before shaking her head and grinning. "You better learn not to go too far, Anna, or mama would have to call the doctor, and the doctor would say..."

"No more monkeys riding on their bikes!"

Tears were flowing with Anna's laughter now.

Tears...that turned into mournful sobs.

Elsa would have run up to Anna, scared first, like Mama Iduna, and apologized profusely. Then she'd grab Anna's hand and pull her up, and she'd give her one of her tender smiles. "What would I do without such a fearless little sister?"

"Not fall over so much?" Anna joked at imaginary Elsa, before sobbing again. She had to get a hold of herself.

As Anna picked up her bicycle and took it back to the garage, she tried to calm herself down.

As Anna picked up her bicycle and took it back to the garage, she tried to calm herself down. Well, fearless? Anna was just clumsy, so getting hurt was part of her life. Getting lost scared her. Having her bedroom door closed scared her. Sometimes, the occasional crocodile possibly hiding under her bed or in the shadows scared her. People wearing masks and people pretending to be statues for tourists scared her too.

If Anna pictured herself as the fearless Princess Anna, she imagined herself following Queen Elsa over snowy mountains and through misty forests. Because it was Elsa who was fearless.

One night, when Anna was eight, she had trouble sleeping, when she heard Papa Agnarr speaking loudly downstairs. When Anna sneaked closer to the stairs, she heard Elsa stutter a bit, which wasn't normal for her anytime.

"I don't understand," Papa Agnarr replied. "I thought this was what you wanted."

Elsa tried to speak again, but he asked, "Why are you letting fear hold you back?"

"It's fear that pushed me to pursue it in the first place!" she snapped. Silence followed. Then, a soft mumbling was heard.

"No, I'm fine. I'll leave now." Her voice was hurt and soft, but firm.

"Elsa, please," Mama Iduna's voice pleaded. But the door closed.

After Anna sneaked back to her room that night, she wondered what Elsa meant. Elsa didn't seem afraid of anything. She was quiet and reserved around a lot of people, but she wasn't afraid. What did the word 'pursue' mean? It probably was whatever Papa Agnarr meant by not holding back. Holding back from what?

So the next morning, Anna asked Mama Iduna about it, and she looked surprised.

"Anna, you shouldn't eavesdrop like that. Especially when you're supposed to be sleep," she chastised instead of answering.

"Papa Agnarr was being loud, and it's not normal for him. Why was he mad at Elsa?"

At first she looked upset, but then she gave a small smile.

"They had a disagreement about something," she explained as she handed Anna her pancakes. "They have disagreed before, so they'll be fine."

Ah, so she wasn't going to tell Anna anything.

She found out a couple weeks later, when Elsa got a new job and moved to a new apartment.

The Rikes owned a large medicine business called Arendal Care, and Elsa had been studying for working there and leading it herself one day. That was what Elsa no longer wanted to go for. She wanted to become a scientist that studies animals and life out in the wild, and Anna knew it would be perfect because Elsa loved nature and could tell the most interesting stories about wolves and bears and Bambi.

Anna stepped inside the house through the front door, and again, gawked at the grandness of it all. The hallway was large with an old history painting, that made her stop and stare at it for a moment. Someone Grandpa's age with brown hair was in it who was probably in one of those armies with canons, since he held his fancy hat in one arm and looked forward like, "I'm in charge." He was probably a general.

Anna gave the army general a salute before spinning around and noticing Grandpa's home office to left of the hallway. Grandpa stood in there with a phone to his ear, facing the window as he spoke all in that business voice of his, (which he actually used all the time) and since he was facing away from her, Anna took the time to study him. He had short, mostly gray hair that still showed some of that red hair that Anna also had. His chin was big and he even had a mustache.

This was her own grandpa, strong and proper, and she felt in that moment how lucky it was that she wouldn't have to face the possibility of being moved to a new foster home. He also sounded like he was having an important talk with someone, and Anna preferred Grandpa to be pleased and proud of her.

To the right of Grandpa's hallway door was a small, black table with a flat rectangular top and two chess piece legs to support it. On top of it sat a white flower pot with purple, white orchids. Next to the orchids were two blue gem stones the size of a football! A black table lamp stood next to the gem stones, and on the wall above the table stood a rectangular, white-framed mirror.

Mirror Anna waved at her like a princess.

Wait. Her eyes narrowed as her hand stopped close to her forehead, where her hair parted over her right-left-whatever-eyebrow. The short, thin line could hardly be seen since the cut hadn't been that deep. Elsa would sometimes be staring at that scar and get lost in thought before quietly touching it with a gentle finger. And then she would apologize again, even though Anna could only remember how Elsa helped her feel better after it hurt.

But that was Elsa; always apologizing.

Anna worried that her accident had caused Elsa's...what was that word again? Depressed-depression. After Papa Agnarr and Mama Iduna explained that to her in the vaguest terms, they would avoid talking about it altogether and explain that she would learn about in school some day. So when Anna tried to impatiently find out on her own...it made no sense.

Elsa didn't act like she had a storm cloud around her head. If it truly was something that Elsa had, maybe it really was Anna's fault and she'd have no idea how because depression didn't make any sense to her.

Except...

There was that time when Anna was shocked to come downstairs and find Mama Iduna holding Elsa tightly. She was whispering sweet, gentle words and stroking her hair like Elsa was Anna's age.

"Thank you, Ma," Elsa's voice was scratchy. And Mama Iduna kissed her on the forehead and stepped back slightly.

"I'm so proud of you, Elsa."

Their moment was interrupted by Anna's sneeze.

"Anna?" They turned to her, and Anna was shocked to see that Elsa's eyes were wet, red and puffy.

"Elsa? What's wrong?" she asked with concern.

Elsa smiled as if her heart suddenly weighed less and Mama Iduna had that small supportive smile.

"I had a rough day, and needed warm hugs." She held out her arms, and Anna gave her warmest hug. Even though she wanted to know what caused Elsa to have a bad day, she knew it would be better to not ask.

Then again, as Anna thought about Elsa's behavior, maybe that was all part of Elsa being so strong and fearless. She loved Anna no matter what was hard for Elsa or what Anna might have caused.

And oh, how she would miss her. Tears began to build again, but Anna tried to hold them back in case Grandpa came out and saw her.

She just had to think cheerful thoughts.

Elsa would always be her sister!

Right?

Ugh! But how could she be sure when she no longer lived with Papa Agnarr and Mama Iduna?

The answer hit her. This was how she could be fearless. She would be the brave Princess Anna who trustfully-no-faithfully followed her queen sister Elsa!

The words were difficult to find for some reason. Anna didn't even know if there were any words in the world that could describe it. She loved Grandpa and Grandma but felt like she was doing something wrong. When she talked with them about how her grades were in school, they said they were proud of her, but when she began to talk about what she actually enjoyed in school, they would give her a minutes' worth of attention.

Grandma would listen longer, sometimes. She not only helped Grandpa with his business but she also had a busy social life. She would invite me to some events, and at first I felt like a proper grown-up, but then they would talk like, "wa, wa-wa-wa, wa-wa, wa-wa-wa," reminding her that grown-ups could put up with boring chatter.

Oh, Anna tried to listen and be interested, but other things in the room like pictures and decorative flowers had more exciting things to say. None of them would speak to Anna very long anyway.

The hardest thing was thinking about the Rikes. They hadn't come to visit her yet, and it had already been a week and a half since she moved. Thinking about their overdue visit made staying positive difficult for her. As she thought about this, she slid down the banister.

"Anna!" Grandma looked shocked as I landed on my knees.

"What? I didn't break it, did I?" Anna looked back at the banister, then back at Grandma's red face as she pulled Anna off the ground.

"We do not slide down banisters in this house," she chastised.

"Oh. Sorry, Grandma. I'll try not to do it again." Grandma was about to speak again, when Grandpa came out into the hallway. He stopped when he saw Anna.

"Ah, I was just going to come get you, Young Lady. Mr. and Mrs. Rike will be calling you in ten minutes," he let her know.

"Really?" Anna almost felt dizzy with anticipation. "Oh yes, yes!"

Despite Grandpa and grandma's constant chastising at Anna's restlessness for the next ten minutes, Anna couldn't calm down. She had been waiting for this all week.

The phone rang and Anna almost squealed. Grandpa spoke curtly before turning on the speaker and handing her the phone.

"Anna?"

"Papa Agnarr!" she breathed.

"Hi Anna!" Mama Iduna was there too. Both spoke in their happiest voices, as 'hi's were exchanged several times back and forth while they reveled in the moment.

"How's our brave princess doing?" Papa Agnarr asked lightly.

"Getting the royal treatment, of course. I mean the house is a castle and the mountain we're on overlooks the mystical country and Cake enjoys the new trails. And really, Grandpa and Grandma are spoiling me like crazy, (she figured it would make Grandpa happy to hear her praising them like this, and it would assure the Rikes that she was fine). They even gave me a phone!"

"Really?" Mama Iduna was surprised.

"And you didn't break it?" Papa Agnarr teased.

Anna laughed a very fake laugh.

"Oh Anna," Mama Iduna's laughter rang loud and beautiful.

"The question is, how many days did it last?" Papa Agnarr chuckled. But Anna did notice from the corner of her eye that Grandpa was glaring down at his desk.

"Uh...I only broke it yesterday," Anna replied, half trying to defend herself.

"Well then, I'm impressed, Anna." Mama Iduna's voice carried the brightest smile.

Anna continued to tell them about school-the things she actually liked to talk about-and how she would be playing basketball. After they asked her lots of questions, she asked them about how they were doing.

"We're sorry Elsa couldn't be here to talk. She would love to hear your voice," Mama iduna said softly. There was some silence, and Anna didn't want the conversation to end. Before she could speak, Papa Agnarr's voice came again, but almost scratchy.

"We're glad you're happy, Anna. We want the very best for you." Why did that make Anna want to cry?

That night, she had trouble sleeping.

The day after, the strangest thing happened with Grandpa. He started to pay attention to Anna. He still kept referring to her mostly as 'Young Lady, but it was with a proud voice, and he wold talk to her about school. One way they would spend time was by putting a large 200 piece puzzle together, but Grandpa didn't usually have time to finish it with her in one sitting, so they still had to finish it.

Anna was thankful he actually seemed to like her now. She had just had to get used to his serious business attitude, and now she saw it as something that made Grandpa special.

A month passed since that phone call. The snowflake clock with pretty bells rang to wake Anna. She fumbled with it for a few minutes until she turned it off. Then she sat there at the edge of her bed, starting to doze off. After a little snore, she abruptly sat up straighter.

Something exciting was supposed to happen today, right?

The visit! Papa Agnarr and Mama Iduna would be visiting for the evening, along with Elsa!

Anna rushed through her morning routine, eager for the evening. At school she pictured a hundred different scenarios of how the Rikes might greet her. Anything from just a friendliest smile to jumping excitedly.

Nothing could get Anna to pay attention for long, but the teachers weren't strict with her, since they all liked her.

They'd also heard her mention her excitement for today, like fifty times.

She couldn't run to the door fast enough at home. The Rikes weren't there yet, of course, but Anna was going to help the maid finish cooking and setting the table. They would be eating fancy salmon, rice and veggies. Anna's restlessness was making her clumsy and talkative again.

"You have too much energy." Grandma shook her head. "Go do something else. I don't want anything to spill or break." But Anna made herself calm down enough that Grandma and Olina stopped worrying. She was going to make her grandparents and the Rikes happy that night.

The front door opened and voices cold be hear, and Anna did start to squeal but she clamped a hand over her mouth. She put on her most calm and reserved face before walking into the hallway to greet them.

But she couldn't help the wide grin that spread when she saw them.

"You're here!"

"Anna," Elsa greeted first, and the three of them smiled gently at Anna.

They didn't look like they were waiting for a warm hug, but hey, it had been a month, and they were here with her. Finally!

"Come on! We're having salmon tonight. And Olina is a good cook." She took Elsa's hand to lead her, and when Elsa's hand squeezed slightly, she felt her heart soar.

It was when they came to the dining room that Anna felt the tension between her grandparents and the Rikes. Oh no! People she loved and wanted to make happy hated each other. And she had no idea why, so her mind went straight to the first possibility, the one person connecting them-herself.

She'd have to fix this.

"So tell us more about school, Anna," Mama Iduna prompted quietly. Her smile was a polite smile she always used with strangers and colleagues. She shook her head and told them about school.

She was proud of herself for not rambling like she used to, but when she glanced at Elsa, her face showed the slightest frown for a split second, and she wondered what she might have said wrong. Something unpleasant stirred deep inside Anna, but she needed to ignore it because it scared her.

"Elsa, do you have anymore stories about wildlife?" Anna's question seemed to make Grandpa look confused at Elsa for a second. "She's studying to become a wildlife scientist," she quickly explained to Grandpa. "Or-well-it's 'biologist' right?

Elsa smiled, "Yeah. Here's something that might surprise you. Forest-"

"I didn't know your daughter was planning on becoming a wildlife biologist." Grandpa said to Papa Agnarr. They started there own conversation, so Elsa continued to speak with Anna.

"Forest fires are often bad, especially for people's homes. But did you know that in some forests, fires actually help wildlife? Coniferous forest fires are good." Anna stared at Elsa in pure wonder as she described how coniferous trees grow and how the forest fires affect the animals.

When Elsa finished talking, Papa Agnarr and Grandpa were almost glaring at each other, and Mama Iduna was looking between them sadly, while Grandma nodded with what Grandpa was saying.

It wasn't working. She couldn't fix this. Anna felt frozen inside, and worse, she felt like a statue. Being still as a statue was horrible.

"Fine." Grandpa agreed to something I missed. "On a different subject then. I am curious. Are you planning on fostering any other children?" This definitely got my attention.

The question caused Mama Iduna to frown.

"Just because Anna is your concern doesn't mean anything else in our private life is," Papa Agnarr replied cooly.

Oh, this was all wrong! The tension was so thick, Anna couldn't stand it, and she felt ready to cry. But she would NOT cry in front of them.

Then she noticed her food. She thought of the times when she choked on her food after eating too fast.

So she began shoveling several bites in a row.

"Anna, caref-" Grandma began to warn, but there came Anna's cue. Food went down the wrong pipe and everyone turned to her with concern. She ran to the bathroom coughing, sputtering, and stumbling.

"Anna!" Grandma and Elsa followed to make sure she was okay. Anna coughed and coughed and coughed, until finally she could begin to breathe normally again. She allowed herself to cry a little as her breathing came more easily.

Elsa rubbed Anna's back soothingly.

"It's okay. You're okay now," she spoke gently. "That one scared me too." Her warm, friendly words helped Anna to calm down her feelings.

"That's why you shouldn't eat so fast," Grandma said.

"Thank you, Elsa," I said hoarsely. "And Grandma."

When they returned to the table, Papa Agnarr and Mama Iduna both smiled in relief.

"I'm okay," Anna smiled.

Their smiles slowly faded when Papa Agnarr looked at Grandpa and they glared at each other. She didn't like that Mama Iduna looked at her with a face that said, 'I'm so sorry.' Then Papa Agnarr looked at her with that face too.

"We're so sorry, Anna. We have to go," he said as he stood up. What! Already?

"What?" Elsa was the one to question. "Pa, wh-" he gave her a look and she shook her head before turning to me. Not her too with that face. Anna wanted to scream at them all to stop giving her that look and to just stop.

I'm sorry, Anna. But everything will be okay. I'll visit you again." Anna was speechless and couldn't respond.

"Take care, Anna," Mama Iduna said and Papa Agnarr said goodbye. As they walked out the dining room, Anna jumped into action and ran after them. She ignored whatever Grandma was saying to her.

"Wait, please!" They turned around and Anna launched herself at them. They were shocked at first, but then quickly squeezed back before releasing. "Do you have to go?"

"We'll see each other again, Anna. I'm sure," Papa Agnarr tried to comfort. But she wanted them to stay. Who knew when their next visit might be?

"We hope the very best for you, always," Mama Iduna added. Anna wanted to grab onto her and not let go.

"Anna..." Elsa looked behind Anna, to Grandpa, now standing there. "Give Olaf a hug for me," she said with her tender smile.

And then they left...

Anna woke up the next morning with a damp Olaf clutched tight in her arms.

A beautiful song you should listen to if you haven't already is the Norwegian translation of "The Next Right Thing." It's so good in Norwegian.

Anyway, stay safe!