Chapter sixteen

Her walls

She had always pictured Elsa as living at the top of the castle. It would make sense to have your coffin hidden as far away from the entrance as physically possible, right? Why would you need such a large castle otherwise?

Yet, as she followed Oliver down twisting halls, branching paths, and the occasional stairway, Anna realized this was the wrong way to look at it. If you lived at the castle's peak, your intruders would just make a beeline for it. The real smart move was to hide away deep in the center of the castle, in a place an intruder wouldn't even think to look.

Oliver wasn't going through any secret passages, or passing any imposing monsters. The path he took was very straightforward, in fact. He walked down plain corridors and took simple, unguarded and untrapped paths. On more than one occasion, Anna noticed a hall she herself had walked down on one of her many ventures, which his path crossed. She had thought she'd explored this lower level pretty thoroughly, yet she realized she had never walked down the specific halls Oliver was now. Perhaps it was a subtle enchantment that gently nudged people away from the correct path – it was hard to tell.

Before long, they came to a hallway that was longer and more poorly lit than most. A massive steel door loomed on their right, tall and imposing. Anna was stunned – they had only walked for about ten minutes, and not at a strenuous pace, either. Yet Oliver confirmed it when he walked up to the door and began to knock on it. This was Elsa's room. Out of the whole gigantic castle, Elsa had been within walking distance the whole time.

Clang clang

Oliver's knocks on the door were slow and methodical, like everything else about him. There was almost no reverb from the knocks, suggesting it was thick as well as massive. After a long time, so long Anna began to wonder if he'd reached the wrong room after all, the response came.

"What is it?" Elsa shouted through the door. Despite its thickness, she was as audible as if she'd been standing beside him. "Who goes there?"

"It is Oliver, miss Elsa," he replied at a conversational volume. Anna struggled to hear him from up in the rafters, but Elsa's hearing was likely good enough to compensate.

"What are you doing here?" came the reply. "I didn't summon you."

"I was just wondering when you had last fed," he said.

"What?" Elsa said, now thoroughly confused. "Why should you care?"

"Miss Anna said I should be concerned," he said. "For your health."

Anna winced. She had realized she should've told him to not mention her at all about a minute after they departed, but it was too late by then. She worried Elsa might lash out upon hearing her name. Oliver could still feel pain.

A few seconds of silence followed. Then, finally, came the reply.

"A-Anna said that?" Elsa asked, voice trembling.

Anna was stunned. She'd never heard Elsa use that voice before. She sounded so vulnerable, so reserved.

"Yes," replied Oliver.

"Then tell her…tell her…" she said. Then her pitch changed. "Tell her nothing! It's no business of hers, do you hear me? Now leave, or I'll make a meal of you!"

"Yes, mistress," Oliver said. He turned and walked away, seemingly having forgotten about his question. Elsa's new order had completely superseded his old objective. Meanwhile, Anna contemplated what she had just witnessed.

That was Elsa with her walls down - unguarded and emotional. The last time I saw her like that was after that holy water incident. I thought that was the only circumstance I would ever see her like that.

Perhaps I may have a chance after all.

Yet this revelation did nothing to calm her nerves. The fact that she was just now seeing even a hint that her goal might be achievable served to underscore how foolish her endeavor was. But she couldn't back down now.

Still, she waited five long minutes before dropping down from the rafter, using her whip to silently descend. She gathered her courage and walked up to the door. It was colossal, easily ten or twelve feet high, and was designed to swing outward, likely to make breaking in that much harder. She raised her fist and knocked on the door.

"What is it now?" Elsa said, now irritable. "Oliver, if that's you again with some more stupid bullshit-"

"Elsa, it's me," Anna said.

Even through the door, Anna heard her gasp. "Anna?" she said, astonished. "H-how did you find me here?"

"I'll tell you later," Anna said. "We need to talk. Please, open this door."

"But…you…" A pause followed. "Oh, I see. You must've followed Oliver. Quite resourceful, miss Stoker."

Her voice was curt again, emotions guarded. She was already on the defensive once more.

"Yes, that's how I did it," she conceded. "Now, please, let me-"

"I must congratulate you, miss Stoker," Elsa interrupted, her tone indicating she wished to do nothing of the sort. "Few can say they have reached the door to my inner sanctum, and none among the living. I should suppose I shouldn't have expected an adventurer to control herself, even one under the pretext of hospitality."

"It's not like that, Elsa," Anna said. "You know it's not-"

"Your patience, too, is commendable," Elsa continued, as if she hadn't been interrupted. "It must've been so dreadful for you to act so kind and friendly to a monster such as I these past few months. But it seems it was all worth it. No doubt you've taken advantage of my leave of absence to prepare for this moment of infiltration. I wonder what devices you have prepared for-"

Anna clenched her fists. "You will listen to me, Elsa!"

Elsa, clearly taken aback, fell silent. Anna was surprised herself, but she kept going.

"You've assumed a great many things about me that aren't so," she said. "You've also insulted and demeaned me because of that. I wish to set the record straight. For that, I need to talk to you."

"Well, you're talking right now," Elsa replied. "No force is sealing your lips, or preventing you from speaking of whatever it is you wish to."

"I will not pour my soul out to a locked door," Anna declared. "Either let me in, or else come out here. I need to speak to you face to face, to know that you're actually listening."

"There you go again, speaking of needs," Elsa said, a touch of venom on her tongue. "Perhaps my English lessons did not manage to lodge themselves properly in your mind, so it seems I must school you on the difference between needs and wants."

"You know what I mean, Elsa," Anna said, but she knew she'd just be ignored again.

"Humans need food, water, and shelter," Elsa said. "All of which I have generously provided you, for no reason other than the goodness of my heart. What you want is different. You want to speak to me, to resume your precious lessons. I have no obligation to fulfill such desires, and if I ever deign to do so again, it will be because I say so, not you! Is that clear?"

Anna didn't respond immediately. She was too busy controlling her anger.

Elsa's words were cruel, harsh, and demeaning. Exactly what Elsa knew would make her lose her temper. For both of their sakes, she couldn't allow herself to fall for it.

She breathed in deeply. "Enough of this, Elsa," she said calmly. "I know you're hurt."

Elsa didn't interrupt her. She continued on.

"You've been hurt many times before, I can tell. You've learned to either lash out or hide away when it happens, and now you've done both. But things aren't as you think. Please, open this door, and we can talk about this like adults."

Elsa didn't respond at first. Then, after a moment, she spoke in a low, rumbling voice. "You speak so confidently of things you know nothing about."

"Then tell me about them," Anna entreated. "Explain yourself."

"I have no need to explain myself to a human," she said, haughtiness returning to her voice. "Now return to your chambers. I will not ask you again."

Things were going nowhere. She had to do something drastic.

Anna stood tall, balled her fists, and uttered just two words.

"Make me."

Another deafening silence was her response, so long Anna almost thought she hadn't heard. Then…

"I don't want to make you," Elsa said in a quiet, shaky voice. It sounded closer, too, as if she was standing right at the door.

"I know you don't," Anna said, putting her hand on the door. "You're not a monster, Elsa, and you don't have to act like one. So please, let's talk."

Yet again, a long silence was her response. Anna waited, barely breathing. Then, she heard a sigh.

"No."

It was weak and sorrowful, but the word still chilled her to the bone.

"You are kind, Anna, and charitable beyond all reason. But you have to learn at some point, there are some things blind faith cannot change."

An eerie, distorted nose emanated from behind Anna. She spun around and saw a strange portal, like a tear in the fabric of reality. A pile of bones fell from it onto the carpet. Giant bones.

Her eyes widened. "Please don't do this," she pleaded to the locked door, now cool to the touch.

"You leave me no choice," Elsa responded in a thick voice. "You've not listened to a single word I said, so it seems I must speak in a language you're more familiar with."

A broadsword fell from the portal, easily eight feet in length. The bones began to rumble, then slowly rose from the floor.

"Elsa, please-"

"Farewell, Anna," said Elsa, sounding utterly miserable. "I trust you can find the way back to your room, or the exit if you prefer. And if you truly are as kind as you seem…perhaps you will forgive me for this."

The bones assembled themselves before her eyes, forming hands, feet, legs. One hand plucked the sword from the floor, and a skull rose above the rest. Two blank eye sockets lit up with purple flame, and a jawbone slowly opened up. The now complete skeleton roared at her, head almost brushing the rafters.

Anna quivered. She took a step away, pressing her back against the now frigid door.

I've never fought anything this big. Never even seen anything this big.

The skeleton took a step forward. The floor shook.

What do I do?

Then, by some mercy of god, her resolve found her again.

Deep breath. Don't let the fear take you. Remember what you're here for.

She closed her eyes and breathed, focusing on what was behind her instead of that in front of her. Elsa was behind that door, surely not happy about what she had just done. She was still hurting bad, suffocating behind her walls. Anna's goal was unchanged, even if the odds had tipped against her.

Anna took a step forward again. With trembling hands, she pulled out her whip and unfurled it.

"I'm not leaving," she said, trying to sound more confident than she was.

The skeleton bellowed in response, raising its sword arm high. Anna leapt to the side, and the colossal sword slammed into the ground with a crash. She swung her whip as she landed, cracking it into the skeleton's right leg. He barely seemed to register the impact. He followed up his first attack with a horizontal swipe, forcing Anna to jump away again. She tried to counterattack a second time, but his incredible range meant that she had leapt too far away, and only the very tip of her whip hit his leg.

She kept her distance as the giant creature continued its assault, trying to figure out a plan of attack. The main advantage of her whip, range, was almost null. She had only her wits and speed to rely upon. Neither her axe nor her daggers would be effective, either. That bottle of holy water might've been handy, but there was no point dwelling on that.

The skeleton made another horizontal swipe, and Anna ducked under it. She remained crouched, then leapt up. Her gravity boots launched her up and forward, and soon she was at his eye level. She cracked her whip and aimed right for the eye. She hit it right in the burning eye socket, at least earning a grunt of pain from the skeleton this time. But then, as she started to fall, he grabbed her out of the air with his left hand.

Anna struggled to escape, kicking at his colossal fingers as her hands were pinned to her sides. "Let go!" she shouted.

He responded by squeezing her tighter, laughing as she cried out in pain. He wasn't breaking any bones, but her arms and chest felt like they were being crushed. He began to walk down the hall, away from Elsa's room and back towards Anna's.

"Oh no…you…don't!" Anna said, struggling to form the words with her chest squeezed like this. She lifted up her knees, raising them into his fist. She held them there for a second, in as close to a crouched position as she could, and kicked.

The gravity boots propelled her feet downwards, colliding with his little finger. There was a resounding crack as her enhanced kick smacked into his knuckle bone, dislodging it entirely. The skeleton shouted out in pain and released his grip. Both his finger and Anna fell to the ground. The bones crumbled into dust upon impact, while Anna somehow landed on her feet, causing her legs to buckle and bringing her to her knees. She gasped for air, knowing she had precious little time to recover. The now nine-fingered skeleton roared at her again, and he pulled back for another horizontal swing. Anna staggered to her feet, but she had no time to evade his slice. She raised her right arm, in the vain hope that she could prevent the sword from cleaving through her entire body.

THWACK

Her arm erupted in pain as the broadsword slammed into it. The impact knocked her off her feet and launched her back down the hall towards Elsa's door. She hit the carpet and rolled, tucking her arms in to minimize the damage. Her pack's clasp broke, and all of her supplies and weapons flew out and scattered around her. She landed on her front and moaned in pain.

"Get up," she groaned to herself. "Get up!"

She tried to push herself off the floor, but her right arm screamed in protest. It hadn't broken, but Anna saw a large bruise forming on it.

It's not broken. That's the important part.

It's not severed, either.

The realization struck her. With that kind of weight, that sword should've carved through her arm like butter, but it hadn't. It hadn't looked razor-sharp, but to be that dull, it must've been intentionally dulled.

She looked up, past her spiked ball she had narrowly avoided landing on, to the giant steel door. Through her tears of pain, she managed a weak smile. "You still don't want me dead, do you?" she said.

"GAAAH!"

Anna turned her head. The skeleton, now thankfully far from her, was throwing a tantrum. He swung his sword around wildly, smashing it into the walls and floor and making a mess of the place. But looking closer at him, she noticed an oddity she hadn't before. While his horizontal swings were fast and uncontrolled, his overhead swings were significantly slower, hitting the ground with less power than the walls. It wasn't something you would notice when all of your attention was devoted to dodging, but now that she saw it from afar, it looked downright unnatural. Why would a mindless enforcer of Elsa's will handicap himself like that?

Because her will is not to kill me.

The realization sent a shot of clarity through her. Powered by adrenaline, she rapidly reassessed the situation.

Elsa didn't want her dead, but she seemed okay with injuring her. By that logic, a horizontal swing with that blunt of a sword was survivable, but an overhead swing would crush her into the ground. Elsa must've commanded the skeleton to give her more time to dodge those attacks, and the oaf simply weakened all of his vertical attacks, even those with no chance of hitting her.

Anna looked up at the door again. She recalled it feeling colder and colder to the touch, but now it was visibly freezing over, with tendrils of frost snaking around the edges. She must've been using ice magic to fortify the door to prevent her from forcing it. That was a gamble, though – she recalled an early lesson explaining that metals became more brittle when their temperature dropped. Of course, Anna had neither the knowledge to open it normally, nor the strength to break it down.

Strength…

The skeleton interrupted her thoughts with a stomp, striding towards her while still brandishing his sword. The fire in his eyes flared up, terrifying lights in the gloom. He opened his mouth and bellowed.

"GOOOO AWAAAAAAY!"

Anna pushed herself up with her left hand. With her right, she grabbed the spiked ball off the ground. Once she was steady on her feet, she took the tip of her whip in hand. She wrapped it twice around the ball, then tied a quick knot. Then she turned to the skeleton once more, holding her makeshift morningstar in both hands, and met his stare with a steely gaze of her own.

"I will not," she said firmly.

The skeleton roared again, and ran at her with his arm pulled back for a slash. Anna stepped backwards until she was next to the door, then jumped forward between his legs as he swung. The sword missed her, but he stopped short of hitting the door with it.

He's not that stupid, at least. Time for plan B.

With both of her hands, she lashed out with her whip. A sharp pain appeared in her right arm as punishment for her rash decision, but this time she got results. The morningstar slammed into the skeleton's right shin, making a satisfying crack as it impacted. He responded with a dull grunt, and Anna knew she'd done more damage than before.

He charged at her again, this time with a narrower stance. This meant he had to bend down further to actually attack, however, and Anna easily skirted around it. Her arm throbbed again, but she landed another solid hit on the same bone.

Three more times, she evaded and struck. Each time, the pain in her arm intensified, but slowly she witnessed the damage grow. The skeleton himself barely reacted, but cracks formed and spread in his shin bone. Though her arm screamed in protest, she also landed a couple of blows on his left leg, just to make sure the final blow would be completely devastating.

Finally, she dashed back to the door and stood in front of it defiantly. The skeleton, who had grown angrier with each missed strike, lumbered towards her, seemingly unaware of the critical damage to his legs. Anna bent her own legs, not enough to trigger her boots, but enough to be ready to dodge the next swing.

But as he approached, he slowed and lowered his arm. He eyed her suspiciously, then the door.

Damn it, has he figured out my plan?

"Well, what are you waiting for?" she demanded. "Hit me!"

He showed no response.

"You have orders, don't you?" Anna said. "To take me away from her room? Well, here I am, right in front of her door, and you haven't done shit about that! You must not be such a loyal servant of hers after all!"

She could sense his anger building, seeing his hands clenching tighter.

"You're supposed to follow my orders as well, aren't you?" she demanded. "That's what Elsa told me – you all have to obey my orders unless they differ from hers. Well, now my orders are the same as hers. Hit me, damn you! I demand that you hit me!"

The skeleton roared, and dropped his sword with a clang. The noise distracted her for a fraction of a second, and when she looked back at him, she saw him lunging forward, reaching out with both hands in a blind rage. Panicking, she realized she couldn't jump to either side, and so had to jump forward, between his hands.

Adrenaline surged through her, and time seemed to show down. As she moved through the air, she twisted to the left and swung with her whip again, aiming at the cracked shin for the final blow. This time, however, she was too close. Instead of hitting the bone with the ball, the whip wrapped around it. The impact wasn't there, but it still could be. All she had to do was pull. But if she wanted this to work, she'd have to pull with both hands. Due to the way she had twisted her body, she'd also be landing on her right arm. Unless she aborted her plan, the pain would be intense.

But this was the plan. If she screwed this step up, she wouldn't get another chance. Her foe seemed just intelligent enough to not fall for the same trick twice, and even if he did, she didn't have much strength left. If she ran away to recover, who knew if Elsa would even still be there by the time she was fit enough to try again? More likely, she'd flee deeper into the castle, and set up defenses that made that iron door look like child's play. He needed to fall now, consequences be damned.

So she did what she had to. She pulled on the whip. She hit the floor. She bit down on her cry of pain. And she heard the sound of two bones breaking.

xxxxxxx

Anna was shouting something. Elsa tried not to hear her.

She was curled up on her bed, if only because it was the furthest place in her room from the door. Of course, there was no ignoring the shaking and crashing that her marshal was generating.

She will be okay. She knows her limits, and he has his orders. He won't kill her.

He won't kill her.

Ice poured from her hands, unmitigated and unwanted. The entire room was coated in it by now. Several of her delicate tools were surely damaged beyond repair, but right now, that was inconsequential.

"Leave me, Anna," she muttered. "Neither of us can hurt each other that way."

Through the whole time Anna had been here, Elsa had never once intended to hurt her. True, she had goaded her into exploring through her monster-filled halls, where she had suffered injury after injury, but she'd justified that as just allowing Anna to injure herself, and not technically hurting her by her direct actions. But now that excuse had backfired. By daring to hope for something between the two of them, Elsa had set herself up to be wounded, and that was exactly what had happened. Pain only deadens once you experience the same kind many times, and this was an absolute first.

She had been let down by humans countless times. She had had her trust broken by humans more times than she should've. But not once had she been hurt in this way – by having false hope of attraction to a human be dashed. It was no fault of Anna's, of course; the mistake was hers.

And yet Anna is suffering for it.

She raked her fingernails across the side of her head, digging beneath the skin as if she could claw out these thoughts of hers.

Why can't I just be the remorseless monster the humans think I am?

"Hit me, damn you! I demand that you hit me!"

Elsa sat up abruptly. Among everything else Anna had been shouting, those words jumped out at her. She was obviously still talking to her marshal, but why would she say that? And it sounded so clear, too, as if she were right on the other side of the…

Elsa flew to her feet and dashed forward. "Stop!" she shouted. "Don't hit that-"

CRASH

She leapt back as her double doors exploded inward, flying off their frozen hinges and smashing into the opposite wall. Right behind them, the bones of her marshal flew in, tumbling and breaking apart as they hit the floor. His skull landed in front of her, looking as abashed and remorseful as a skeleton could.

"Forgive me, mistr-" he managed, before crumbling into a pile of dust.

The rest of the skeleton fell apart, kicking up a dust cloud that obscured the doorway. Through the cloud, she saw a figure slowly approaching.

Elsa clenched her fists and forced herself to stoke the flame of anger that had been smothered under her despair. Silently, she cast a warming aura, melting away any trace of her ice.

"Well, miss Stoker, you've done it again," she said. "Not only have you disobeyed my orders even more brazenly than usual, you've destroyed my sanctum! I hope you understand the consequences of your-"

The dust began to settle, and Elsa stopped abruptly.

Anna's right arm hung limply at her side. With her left hand, she tried to hold it steady, but it moved a little with every step she took, sending a twinge of pain across her face each time.

Elsa tried with all her might not to let the concern show on her face. "A-and once again, you've injured yourself just to get closer to me. I th-thought you humans were supposed to learn from your mistakes."

At first, she thought the look on Anna's face was pure, unbridled anger, but as she drew closer, she could see that it was simply determination. "We…are going…to talk," she declared through clenched teeth.

It ought to be anger. After all, her arm has been broken directly because of my actions.

Elsa tried to make eye contact, but her vision kept drifting to Anna's arm. "Well, you've got what you wanted. One way or another, you won't be confessing to a l-locked door. You may speak until I s-s-summon another guard."

Her voice betrayed the emptiness of her threat. The guilt that had been tearing her up inside was now threatening to burst out of her completely.

Anna glared at her. "How…long?"

"What?" Elsa asked. "I-it depends, on which monster I next choose to-"

"How long have you had feelings for me?" Anna shouted. She leaned forward as she did, moving her arm that much more. The pain this action produced came out in her last word, which turned pained and dissonant. "That's my question to you for the day!"

That pain is my fault. Mine, and mine alone.

Now Elsa couldn't look at her at all. "Y-you're…speaking nonsense," she said. "Our relationship is purely…utilitarian."

Anna pointed at her. "You're lying," she said, wincing again as her right arm moved again, no longer held in place by her left. "I need to hear the truth, straight from your-"

"For god's sake, Anna, stop moving your arm!" Elsa shouted desperately.

Anna fell silent, her eyes opening wide.

Well, I've done it now. Gave it away completely.

Elsa turned her back to Anna. "You've made your point," she said, defeated. "Return to your chambers now. My thralls will treat your wounds, and tomorrow we will resume your lessons."

It was a weak order, devoid of any of the command and control she normally possessed. If Anna didn't listen to her when she spoke declaratively, there was no way she would now.

"You still haven't answered my question," Anna pressed. Even with her back turned, Elsa heard her take another step forward.

"Do you wish to make me suffer further?" Elsa said, taking a step away.

"I want nothing of the sort," Anna said.

"Well, you should," Elsa said miserably. "I'm a monster who's verbally abused you, shut you away, and broken your arm. If you had any sense, you'd be taking out a stake right now."

"You're more than that, I know," Anna said. "Just tell me how long you've had feelings for me."

"Why could that matter now?" Elsa asked her.

"Elsa, please. I need to know."

"Don't make me say it."

"Come on, Elsa. Just-"

"From the first day you arrived!" Elsa exploded.

Anna fell silent, so she continued. "You strode through my front door, called me by my name, and proved yourself a higher caliber than any human I had ever met." She lowered her head. "I tried to deny it to myself, but time and again, you made that impossible."

Her head was in her hands now. "If you wish to stake me, now would be the moment to do so," she muttered. "I know you need two hands for it, so I'll hold it steady for you if you promise to make it quick."

Anna slowly approached her. She tensed up.

"Turn around."

Elsa opened her eyes. Her voice…it wasn't full of anger, or scorn, or sorrow. It wasn't even dispassionately neutral. It was…

Impossible.

She turned, head still hung.

Anna reached out and took Elsa's face in her hand. Gently, she angled it up until they had made eye contact. Anna looked at her with warmth in her eyes, and a faint smile – a smile! – graced her face.

"You fool," she breathed. "We've wasted so much time we could've shared."

Elsa's eyes grew wide. "You mean…you…?"

Anna nodded. "Took me too long to realize it, too."

"But Kristoff…"

Anna shook her head. "…was the only man I've ever slept with, and ever will."

Elsa reached out. As delicately as she possibly could, she brushed some hair out of Anna's face. "Then I…" For the first time since the foyer, she managed a smile. "I can…I'm so…"

Abruptly, she snapped to reality. "Your arm," she said. "I need…a sling…some bandages." She ran through a mental map of her castle, trying to think of where she could find some. "I'll be right back. Please…stay here," she begged. Anna nodded, and she dashed off.

Anna, left in Elsa's room, finally allowed her body to relax. Exhaustion pulled at her, drowning out the pain in her arm, but not the warmth in her heart. She spotted a bed against the far wall, and slowly walked to it, cradling her arm as she did.

Gently, she laid herself down in the bed. It was unbelievably comfortable, though roughly the same size as her own accommodations. There was an indent in the mattress from Elsa's innumerable nights in this bed, and Anna soon found herself nestled within it. Despite the recently frozen door, the room was comfortably warm.

Though the action had been quick, it was draining. Anna soon felt herself drifting off to sleep, nestled in Elsa's bed, thinking of the insane events that had just happened.

All that was left to do was dream about what might happen when she came back.