Content warning: blood. Not terribly graphic, though. Also happens after "Illness", but that's the only tie-in.


Slip

All Anna is trying to do is walk when she trips over a scrunched part of the carpet in the hallway. Her foot catches, she falls forward, and her face becomes painfully acquainted with a statue wielding a miniature sword. Within mere seconds, she lands on the floor.

"Oww..." Anna moans as she comes to her senses. There's a sharp burning sensation on her right cheek. Hesitantly, she brings her fingers up to the area, not surprised when they come back stained with red.

Fortunately, or not, depending on the severity of the situation, there is no one in the hall at the time. That knowledge is enough to get Anna on her feet and briskly heading for the washroom, hoping that she doesn't run into anyone on the way.

"C'mon, just this once, don't be out of your office," Anna begs under her breath. She hastens, knowing that it may just cause another accident, but she just can't deal with Elsa fussing over her today. The queen has been just a little too protective since Anna was ill a few weeks ago.

Success is within arm's reach, the washroom mere feet away.

"Good, I can do this without-"

"Anna! I heard something crash, is everyth- is that blood? Are you alright!?"

The princess gives a frustrated groan. The opportunity to abscond escapes her, as a pair of cool hands grip her shoulders. The sudden contact causes Anna to yelp.

"Geez, where did you come from?" Anna rubs the spot over her heart. "You're gonna give me a heart attack."

"Anna, why are you bleeding!?" Elsa squeezes her sister's upper arms.

The princess feels a wave of cold rush over her body. A dusting of snowflakes whirls around her in a veil.

"That's new," she glances at the flurry, then back at Elsa. "You okay?"

Elsa dismisses the snowflakes with a brusque motion of her hand.

"I'm fine. What happened to you? Did someone do this? God, you're lucky it missed your eye."

There are but a few things Anna truly cannot stand. One of which is pickled herring, the other, Elsa's fretful hovering. Anna is already in pain from her slip, she's certain some of the blood has leaked onto her dress by this point, and she just wants to deal with this herself.

"Elsa, relax! Nobody did this to me, I tripped. That's all."

"What could you have tripped on to get this!?"

"Th—that statue with the sword. The carpet was bunched up and I didn't see it."

Without another word, Elsa grabs Anna's hand and swings the washroom door open.

"Elsa, will you stop?! I'm fine, it's just a cut," Anna hates to be short with her sister, but this is getting a little ridiculous.

"You haven't seen it, Anna," the elder sister argues, filling up a basin with water. She fumbles around for a towel and some basic first aid supplies. "I can't leave you alone for a minute, I swear..."

"That's not fair," Anna voice raises, startling Elsa into nearly dropping a bottle of salve. "You're acting like I do this on a regular basis or something. It was an accident."

Elsa freezes in place. She sneaks a guilty glance in the princess' direction. Anna's eyes already hold guilt for her outburst.

"I'm not a little kid anymore," Anna softens. "Please, stop treating me like it."

"...You're right. I'm sorry," Elsa wrings the towel in her hands. "But I still want to help."

Anna gives a nod of permission. The queen carefully presses the towel against the redhead's cheek for a few seconds. She removes the once snow-white towel to check the damage. It's now darkly stained with blood in a thick line.

"Oh..." the princess' eyes go wide. "That's—that's a lot of blood."

"Stay with me, Anna," Elsa urges. "We need to get the bleeding under control."

Elsa retrieves a new towel, then wets it with alcohol. She hands it off.

"Hold this to the wound. It'll sting a little, sorry."

Anna takes the towel with shaky hands, pressing the cloth to her face. She hisses at the frothing sensation, and the color is slowly draining from her face.

"I didn't know," the redhead mumbles, momentarily removing the cloth. "Haha...that's a lot of blood."

"Put that back on," Elsa picks up the nerves in her sister's laughter. She pauses her preparations to lay a reassuring hand on Anna's arm. "You're okay. It's not deep, so you won't need stitches."

"O–okay."

It's about thirty minutes later that the bleeding finally lets up. Anna watches her sister unroll a gauze bandage, clipping it to the correct size for the wound. She applies medical tape to all four sides, leaving overlap so it will stick. She is careful not to touch the center with the salve.

"Elsa, I don't...feel so good," there's a subtle slur to Anna's words. She has paled considerably, and a slight tremor shudders through her body.

"It's okay," Elsa squeezes Anna's free hand. "It's just the blood loss. You're gonna be okay."

Anna doesn't doubt that, but she also doesn't count on feeling this drained from a simple wound. Elsa had said it wasn't that deep, so why was she feeling woozy?

"Hey, c'mon, stay with me," a cool palm cuddles Anna's uninjured cheek. "Does it hurt anymore?"

"It's...throbbing a little."

"Okay. I'm gonna put the bandage on now," Elsa carefully positions the gauze so it's covering the entire wound. "This might hurt a bit."

If it does, Anna doesn't show it. Once the princess is taken care of, Elsa washes her hands and discards the bloody towels.

"Are you okay?" the queen timidly asks.

"Dizzy, but okay," Anna replies with a vague smile. "Thanks."

Elsa nods, heaving a soft sigh of relief.

"Let's get you something to eat. Lean on me."

Too tired to protest, Anna allows her sister to lead her towards the dining hall. As much as Anna hates being fussed over, there's a small part that loves the tender attention only Elsa can provide.


Closing notes: Yes, you can feel woozy from a minor to moderate cut. I managed to slice the very tiny tip of my thumb with a boxcutter and that son of a bitch bled for about half an hour. I was not feeling well afterward. I still have the scar.