Elsa returned to consciousness a few times before fully waking. The first time, she felt herself atop something that was swaying as it walked, and her first half-formed thought was that it was a horse, but it was too big. Before she could form another coherent idea, she had slipped back into the dark.

The second time, she was no longer moving, but she could feel pressure on her legs and chest, pressing her against what felt like a stiff board. She managed to open her eyes to see a bright blue sky, and a vaguely face-shaped thing nearby. She saw the face-thing move towards her, but before it had moved a couple inches she had already closed her eyes again. Her eyelids felt so very heavy, and the sky was so bright.

The third time she woke, it had become dark. A vast starscape stretched out before her, the tops of trees swaying in the nighttime breeze at the edge of her vision. She was lying on something softer than before, the pressure on her was gone, and her brain seemed less foggy. With this clarity came pain. Waves of dull agony radiated from her right leg and her left side. She closed her eyes, mouth clamped shut, breathing hard through her nose to control the pain. The pain had just started to subside when she took one breath that was just a little deeper than the others, and a white hot stab of pain shot up her side. She gasped, her body involuntarily bending towards the site, succeeding only in moving her leg enough to cause a flare of agony there too. She forced herself to lay still, controlling her breathing. When the pain had subsided back down to the dull throbbing, she opened her eyes. She looked to the left, and didn't see anything but a grassy field and a couple sparse trees. She looked right, and her breath caught in her chest.

Heins sat upright against a tree, illuminated by the soft glow of the moon, a few feet away from where Elsa was lying. He was asleep, his head drooping onto his chest. It looked like he'd been there all night. Waiting for her. Elsa stared at him, taking in every detail she had missed for the past two years. Never before had she so acutely regretted her actions the night of the Fall. His hair was longer than she had seen it before, in a stark contrast to her and Anna. He hadn't grown the full beard that Kristoff had, but it was clear he hadn't shaved in a week or so. Like the rest of them, he was thinner by a decent margin. He had a new scar, a thin line starting above his right eyebrow and finishing on his cheek, though it looked like his eye had been spared. Elsa reached out to wake him, then stopped, her hand hovering over his shin.

What on earth was she supposed to say? "Hey honey, sorry I abandoned you and made you think I was dead for two years, want a hug?" Or maybe, "Yeah, I left because I was going to kill myself, so that's that, nice to see you." Or how about that old classic, "I left you because I'm terrified of losing you, and if you think that doesn't make sense, congratulations, you're right!"

Besides, how would he react? Sure, he was by her side now, but how did she know it wasn't just his turn to make sure she didn't bleed out in the night? He had been so loyal, so committed to her, and she turned her back on him with nothing but a couple of words scribbled on a scrap of paper. She must have hurt him so much. For the thousandth time, she put herself in his shoes and imagined coming back to that tree, just to find no Heins and nothing but a note telling her not to look for him, the hurt and betrayal and heartbreak that would have followed, and as it always did, shame swelled up and threatened to overwhelm her. She pulled her hand back and laid her head back down, fighting to keep the tears from spilling. No, she had to think of something before he woke up-

"Elsa!"

She gasped, barely managing to contain herself from jumping and sending more pain coursing through her body, but even still, her leg was throbbing. Heins was sitting up straight now, staring at her with an expression that Elsa could not read. Was he mad at her? Worried about her?

"Heins…" she whispered. "I'm… I'm so sorry…" she managed to say, her breaths coming in short gasps between suppressed sobs. Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes, running back along her temples and nestling in her hair. "I never should have-"

Whatever she had been about to say died in her throat, as Heins leaned forward, took her face in his hands, and pressed his lips to hers. A wild thrill shot through Elsa's body, electrifying her, and she returned the kiss with frantic enthusiasm, ignoring the pain from her side as she did. Everything that she had been worried about, all the long nights wondering if Heins was dead, if he could forgive her, if she would ever see him again… all of that melted away in that one kiss. Some tiny, rational part of her knew that it would not be just as it was, not right away, but she pushed that aside. Future Elsa could deal with that. Right now, Present Elsa relished in the love she thought lost for so long.

By the time they broke apart, both were flushed and panting. Heins took her hand in his and bowed his head, pressing his cheek against her palm. "Elsa… I've missed you so much."

"Y-you're not mad at me?" she asked in a small voice. It felt like she was being spared punishment after her father caught her stealing dessert from the kitchens with Anna, back before the accident. Her heart was cowering in the corner like a whipped dog whose master was approaching, daring to hope for the best, but expecting the whip at any moment.

He straightened up, but didn't let go of her hand. "No. Are you mad at me?"

"No!" Elsa couldn't believe her ears. "But… how? You should be."

"We all walked away that night..." Heins said. Elsa didn't know what to say to that, so she just waited. Heins looked up, into the trees, looking thoughtful. He was silent for a moment, then he said, "Elsa, do you remember our vows?"

"Of course I do…." She winced as another line of pain ran up her leg, but Heins didn't seem to see.

"I always liked the blessing of Air best. Do you know why?" She shook her head. "'Each day is a new opportunity for growth'. I liked that." He looked back down at Elsa, meeting her eyes. She had missed looking into those eyes. "I don't know why you chose to leave me behind that night. I don't know why you pushed me away while you were at your lowest, when all I wanted was to be by your side." The shame she had felt so often was back, more powerful than ever before. "But then a few things happened, because of that. Things you don't know yet."

He smiled down at her. "Because of that, I happened to bump into Elsie. Remember her? She helped you at the Battle of Corona, and again during the Fall."

Elsa strained to remember, and a vision of a kind, sweet girl, with curly blonde hair and green eyes, swam to the front of her mind. "I think so."

"She's the one who saved you yesterday." Elsa's heart seemed to perk up in her chest, a glimmer of joy shimmering in the dark. Elsie was alive? Before she could think much more on that, Heins continued. "Through her, I found Baldur, and through him, Alan, Cari, Silas, Leila. They're all alive now, because you chose to set me on a different path than yours." The feeling of joy spread to one of elation, as well as a wave of relief as an enormous weight was lifted off her chest. Elsa had assumed them dead long ago, dead because of her. If they were still alive…

Heins reached out and stroked Elsa's cheek with his thumb. "I don't know why we all split up that night," he whispered. "But we're all here now. And because of what we did, our friends are still alive. I don't see the point in being mad at you. It wouldn't change what is, and I don't know if I would if I could." He took his hand away, and Elsa felt a momentary urge to grab it and put it back, then he continued. "Don't get me wrong. I've missed you more than I thought possible."

"I missed you too…"

"There have been many times where I was so angry at you I couldn't see straight."

"I know. I'm sorry…" Elsa whispered. He nodded almost imperceptibly, an acknowledgement of her apology, but not an acceptance, not yet. That was okay. There was another throb of pain from her leg.

"But the past is in the past. And dammit all, I still love you more than anything."

"I love you too."

He looked away again, and fell silent for a little while as the sun crept over the horizon, bathing him in gold. Elsa wanted to say something but forced herself to wait for him. When he spoke again, his voice was quiet and low. "I want you to promise me something, Elsa."

"Anything." It didn't matter what he asked at this point. She was willing to do anything to make up for what she had done to him, to them all.

Heins turned to meet her eyes, then brushed another tear from her cheek. "Don't… ever… do that again."

Elsa let out a quiet, watery laugh that was half a sob. "I- I promise."

"Good." Heins leaned in and kissed her, then sat up, more businesslike. Elsa knew there would be more to talk about, but for now, she was content. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I got hit with an arrow," Elsa deadpanned. "Twice."

Heins raised his gaze into the distance, his face blank, and sighed. It was a very long sigh.

"My leg really hurts," Elsa said, her tone serious now.

"Let me take a look at your side first, Elsie said that was a more serious wound." Elsa moved her arms out of the way as Heins pulled down the thin sheet she had been sleeping under. Elsa held her breath and looked away as Heins started to undo the bandages around her midsection. When she felt the last of the bandages being pulled away, she looked down, preparing for the worst.

To her surprise, the wound on her side looked neat. Disturbing, the way the hole was just… there, where it shouldn't be, but neat. There was a mixture of what smelled like honey and some mottled green goo smeared over it, but the injury itself was not swollen or oozing, which she knew was a good sign. Heins nodded with an approving murmur. "Elsie's good at what she does," he said. "You knew that already, but believe me-" he indicated the scar on his face- "she is very good at what she does. But…" He gave her a sympathetic smile. "This part's going to hurt. I need to see the other side."

"It went all the way through?" Heins nodded, and as he did, Elsa had a hazy image swim to the front of her mind, the image of a barbed arrow point, dripping blood, sticking out of her back. "Okay… Tell me when."

Heins took her left hand with his right, and put his left hand on her shoulder. "Three… two… one… now!" He pulled her left shoulder up, rolling her onto her side. Her side screamed in protest, but Elsa fought back the scream by squeezing Heins's hand as tight as she could. It had to have hurt him, but he did not react. She lay there on her side for a few moments while Heins inspected her back, then he lowered her back down. She lay there, breathing hard, trying not to cry, still gripping Heins's hand.

"Are you okay, honey?" Honey. The use of her old endearment made her head feel like it was spinning. Is this real? Can this be real?

"I'm fine," she said, and she could see he suspected she was lying. But she really was fine, as fine as she could be right now.

"Alright. Let me check your leg out and then we can get everyone up."

Elsa's eyes widened. "Wait, Heins."

"Huh?" He paused with his fingers just about to undo the knot on her leg bandage.

"Are the others… I mean, are the others mad at me?"

He chuckled as he began to unwrap Elsa's leg. She bit back a gasp of pain as some of the dried blood stuck to the bandage and pulled at her skin. "You haven't changed much, Elsa."

"What do you - ah!- mean?"

"Sorry," Heins said, unwrapping the last of the bandage and peering at the wound. Like the other, this one was smeared in honey, but unlike the other, this one was swollen and red, and there was no green salve. He gingerly touched the swollen area, causing Elsa to gasp in pain despite the lightness of his ttouch. "It's warm. Might be getting infected," Heins said with a worried expression. "I'm going to check with Elsie." Leaving both wounds uncovered for now, he stood up and headed towards a nearby collection of tents Elsa hadn't noticed yet.

"Wait, Heins," she said before he could get too far away. "What did you mean?"

He answered without stopping, saying over his shoulder, "You and Anna both have always been your own worst enemies."

What was that supposed to mean? Elsa thought, a little offended. It's not like she was too hard on herself, most of the bad things that had ever happened to either one of them or the kingdom at large was genuinely because of her, it's why she had secluded herself for so… long... Oh.

But that was just Elsa, Anna wasn't like that at all. Anna was always so nice to everyone. You could be forgiven for thinking she was terrified they were going… to push her away. Oh. But that's my fault too… oh. Though Elsa internally conceded the point, she knew that while Heins was right that being too hard on themselves was a flaw shared by both her and her sister, the main reason for Anna's self-doubt really was Elsa. Though Elsa had only been doing what she had been told, what she and her parents both thought was right, to protect Anna, there was no doubt in her mind now, years later, that it had been the wrong decision, and that Anna would not have many of the struggles she had now if not for that mistake.

Heins returned then, saving Elsa from more self-rumination. Behind him came the curly haired blonde girl that Elsa recognized as Elsie. She hadn't changed much in the past two years, physically, at least, but Elsa could see a hardness to her eyes that she was sure hadn't been there before. Another sinking feeling of sorrow and regret bubbled up in Elsa's heart at seeing yet another person changed by the circumstances she'd caused.

"Your Majesty," Elsie said in a formal, stiff tone as she curtseyed.

"Elsie, I think we're well past that," Elsa said, smiling at the young woman, relieved when her eyes softened by a shade. Perhaps she hadn't completely ruined Elsie's life after all. "Heins told me you saved my life. Thank you."

"Of course, Your Majesty. May I?" she asked, gesturing to Elsa's injuries. Elsa nodded, and Elsie bent down to examine her, her tongue stuck between her teeth, her fingers brushing over the surface of Elsa's skin near the wounds.

"What's the green stuff?" Elsa asked, indicating the thick goo on her side.

"It's an herbal salve," Elsie answered without looking up. "It's preventing infection."

"Oh. Then…" Elsa faltered, not wanting to insult Elsie.

"Go on, Your Majesty. I'm happy to answer questions."

"Why isn't it on my leg?"

Elsie didn't answer right away. She poked at Elsa's leg a little harder, and seemed to note the sharp intake of breath with a frown. "The herbs are to prevent infection from fluids in your gut. It won't work on other things." She straightened up.

"I have good news and bad news. The good news is that none of your major organs were punctured. If the arrow had been a little more to the right, it would have hit your stomach and there would have been nothing I could do. You got very lucky, Your Majesty."

"I don't feel very lucky," Elsa said, "but I trust that you're right." She paused, dread building in her gut at Elsie's trepidation. "And the bad news?"

Elsie hesitated, glancing back and forth between Elsa and Heins. "The arrows were poisoned. The arrow that struck your side went clean through before it could get into your blood. I just snapped off the arrowhead and pulled it out. The one in your leg, though… that one impacted your femur. We got it out before the poison could be fully absorbed, but… I think there's a piece of the arrowhead lodged in your bone. If we don't get it out, the poison could kill you."

Author note: Poor Elsa's not quite out of the woods yet, guys. None of them are. They made some huge strides in these chapters, but the rifts that exist between our gang are not so easily healed.