I'll admit, this is not my best work. But I would rather move on than to agonize over this any longer.

She couldn't sleep.

After she and Hans had returned back to their bedchamber that night, changing out of their clothes and into the comfort of their night clothing, both had buried themselves underneath the thick covers, with the auburn-haired Prince holding her close against his chest, never once letting go as his hand drew large comforting circles over her back. They would tell both Anna and Kristoff, as well as the rest of the Council, of what had occurred later tomorrow, when they were in better state and well rested, as knocking on their doors so late in the night would not be ideal.

Shutting her eyes, she had desperately tried to push herself to sleep, knowing how exhausted she was after the whole ordeal -both from the happier ones and the grimmer ones, but she just couldn't. Even listening to the thump of her husband's heart, the rise and fall of his chest with every breath that he took, noting how it grew steadier each time as sleep seemed to be kinder to him, could not convince her mind to let go, just for these few hours before morning come. No, she had remained aware of her surrounding, of how the fire crackled lowly in the fireplace that had been kept dimly lit to warm the bedchamber, of every time the wind rattled the glass windows, of how the mattress would shift and sink with every movement that Hans had made in his sleep.

Her husband was fast asleep, she could understand how tired he must be to be in such deep slumber that he did not even react when she had removed his hand from around her, or when she had scooted to the edge of the bed until she could get up onto her feet.

Making her way toward the triangular window, she had lowered herself to sit on the cushioned sill, pulling her legs close to her chest as she looked out at the darkened sky. It… soothed her, at least, looking out to her kingdom, peaceful and quiet as everyone rested comfortably in their own houses, the fjord water as calm as it always been, glittering as it reflected the moonlight high above. Arendelle had always been her home, beloved in her heart as she swore to protect it from the moment that she was crowned in the holy place before God's eyes.

The first man to ever stood up against the witch of Arendelle.

Shaking her head, she had willed her mind to clear of the horrible image of the man that had once attempted to assassinate her. She should not let him haunt her, driving her off the edge just like so. He could no longer bring harm to her nor to her family and people, he was gone, once and for all, and she should be relieved.

Yet she just couldn't shake the feeling that there was something else behind this, something bigger.

What had drove her to leave her bedchamber she could not tell, but ever so carefully she had shut the door behind her, listening to the 'click' of it before she had made her way down the hallways, dancing flames from the candles the only source of light to lead her way. Pausing just right outside of the door, she could not help but have the smallest of smile when her eyes had drifted downwards to the bottom part of the door where, although hidden by the dark of the night, stains of ink that the servants still had not been able to completely rid of.

Stepping inside, keeping her footsteps as quiet as possible, she had carefully climbed into the bed after she had closed the door, peeling the covers with the least movement as she laid down, arm coming to wrap around the small figure sprawled on the mattress.

The young boy mumbled in his sleep, his brows furrowing, but soon relaxed back as he moved to snuggle against her embrace once he had recognized his mother's chilled skin, head nestled underneath her chin as his arm reached up to wrap around her neck. "Mama…"

"Can Mama sleep here?"

"Mm-hm…"

Holding her son close, to feel his warmth as she buried her face against the unruly auburn locks, had actually brought tears pooling in her eyes, blurring her vision as she bit the inside of her cheeks to keep herself from actually making a sound.

It was not a good time; it was not the right time. She thought it was, but it wasn't. This day was supposed to be filled with joy -it was supposed to be one of the most important days in Anna's life, and yet it had so cruelly turned into a grim reality that she didn't wish to recall. Everything that she had planned with care and attention to detail had come crumbling down right at her feet. Even the one thing that she had once looked forward to, when they had ended the party and it was only her small family that had remained, gathered by the fireplace as they unwind from the high of the day, had to be let go because now she knew that it would only worsened their situation.

"Mama?" Wilhelm had tilted his head up, eyes wide open despite the late hour, watching her before he had wriggled out of her embrace, sitting up on the bed as his hand reached forward toward her face, careful fingertips wiping against the tears that had streamed down her cheeks even with her best effort on concealing them. "Don't cry."

Embarrassment shot through her whole body, for she had found herself having being comforted by her own three years old son after she had been the main reason why he was awake. But his gesture, his gentle touch despite his expected tiredness, had warmed her heart even more. Wilhelm was always been such a kind child, always so attuned to his surroundings, aware of people's feelings as he worked in his own way to comfort those that needed it.

"Don't cry." He repeated, just as she herself had rose to sit on the mattress as well, opening her arms for him to come, catching him into her embrace as he threw himself against her, holding him close as his index finger traced random shapes against the exposed skin of her neck. "Why are you sad, Mama?"

"Because sometimes reality can be cruel, darling." And everything she had planned, the peaceful life that she craved for, could only be nothing but a mere hope, a dream so close yet still out of reach. And to top it all off, it was not just her life that was affected by it, but her whole family, her husband, her sister, her soon-to-be brother in-law, her son, everyone that was dear to her endangered because of her and how the rest of the world outside of Arendelle seen her. "All I want is for you and Papa and Auntie Anna as well as Uncle Kristoff to be safe."

"But we are!" The young Prince exclaimed, head pulling away from it's place in resting against her shoulder to look up at her, lips pursed. "We have you, Mama!"

That feeling returned, yet as she did not wish to display such discomfort in front of her son, she had used her entire might to swallow and pushed it all to the back of her mind and instead brushed away strands of auburn hair that had fallen over his face before she placed a kiss against his forehead. "Let's go back to sleep, it's so late for you to be up, my darling Prince."

"But you're not sad anymore, Mama?"

"No." She didn't want to lie, but she was not about to trouble her young son over matters that he did not even have the complete grasp of understanding just yet, maybe if he had grown older then she would tell him. Wiping her face from any stain left by the earlier running tears, she had offered him a reassuring smile. "I'm not sad anymore, all thanks to you."

Wilhelm beamed up at the prospect of being the reason of her 'disappearing' sadness, pushing against her as he stood on the bed until she had no other choice but to lie down, head sinking into the plush pillow while he busied himself in tugging the blanket over her body, tucking her in neatly with a pat against her arm before he leaned down, lips pressing a sweet kiss against her cheek before he snuggled back into her embrace, fingers grasping onto the fabric of her nightgown.

"May I have my lullaby, Mama? Please?"

Chuckling, she had nodded as her hand settled on his back, gently patting against it along the rhythm of the song that she had sung to him even before he was born.

"Where the North wind, meets the sea. There's a river full of memories."

Days past and still the gloom remained.

The guards had rid of the man's remains as soon as the following day had allowed them enough light to go and bury him, in such early hour where no one had started their day yet as not to alarm the townspeople as they carried the corpse out and away from the castle's grounds. No one had spoken of the incident since then, had been rather quiet after the whole ordeal. The Queen had presented herself in front of the crowd that very same day, under the bright light of the sun, from above the balcony as people gathered in the courtyard once again, speaking of reassuring words that all was fine and there was nothing that they should fear, that the assassination attempt would not affect the kingdom, and that everyone in Arendelle was safe.

That had been her display in front of the crowd.

Behind the walls, however, she could not shake off the thought of the man, of the look on his face when he had spoken with such dire hatred, of how he had regard her as such a vile being and of the accusations that she had not heard for so long. He was willing to die, to commit such unspoken act, right before her very eyes even before she could even give him the sentence for his crimes. She had never intended for death to befallen him, she never intended for death to befallen anyone, and now the sight of his contorting body had been burned into her mind, haunting her into restless sleep and even more exhausting days.

Hans worried, as he always did, especially when he had woken up without her by his side that day, but she had assured him that she was fine after holding their son close throughout the night. And truly, it was, she had not felt as miserable when she had woken up and find Wilhelm sprawled over the bed as he found his way out of her embrace and somehow managed to turn his whole body until his head had come close to the edge while his legs were propped up against his mother's body. She could comfortably confirm that he took after his aunt.

Warm timid fingertips brushed against her hand on the table had been able to snap her out of her daze, shaking her head to clear her mind as she looked over, across the small round table, to the sight of her sister, turquoise eyes watching her closely as she had leaned forward to reach for her.

"Elsa, stop tormenting yourself."

She wished she could. She wished she could follow her younger sister's footsteps, to follow her pace in recovering from the shock that they had gone through. Anna, despite the fact that it had been her engagement celebration that had been ruined, had handled it better than she, she was not as shaken nor that she was so badly affected by it. She was not overthinking everything.

"I know you're afraid, but he's gone, Elsa, he's not going to hurt any of us ever again." Of course, she had told the Princess of what had happened in the dungeon, though she had saved the unsettling details and had only given the main picture, saving her from the same haunting image. "And Lieutenant Mattias had assured us about the increase in security around the castle and even the town, remember? There will be no more assassins that could easily slip into Arendelle undetected."

But what a change it was. Under Hans' instruction, and Anna's surprising support, the gates to the castle's grounds were temporarily shut for the public, not even those who wished to hold an audience with the Queen was allowed to enter. The people had been made to understand though, that it was the royal family's method of keeping their safety, and that it would not be permanent, just until all of this had died down. But even Kristoff was not allowed to make his way out in the town as freely as he was used too, kept inside had made the man uneasy, though he had never expressed it.

And the assassination attempt had only opened her eyes further to the threat that still loomed outside. People, especially those beyond Arendelle, had still feared her, as they rationally would when it comes to a Queen running a kingdom that possessed magical powers. She may be accepted in Arendelle and it's neighboring kingdoms, but those beyond that? "It's not just that, Anna."

"Then what is it?"

"I-" the words were right there, at the tip of her tongue, and yet something had held her back from speaking of it. But Anna was waiting, sitting there for afternoon tea with her older sister in the gardens, expecting an answer. And would she even have the heart to keep this from her own sister? They did promise not to shut each other out. She had broken that promise once, and she didn't wish to repeat her mistake. "Anna, I'm-"

"Mama!"

The sudden cry for her had prompted both ladies to turn their attention away from each other, head turning toward where the sound had come from, bolting up from their seats upon the sight of the boy sitting on the ground, in the brink of tears. During other times, Anna would most definitely outrun her in anything, as the Princess was known to be quite fast, but now her feet had moved even quicker, closing the distance between her and her son in a matter of seconds as her protective instinct had kicked in the moment of her son's need.

Coming to kneel by his side, she had noted at how he had cradled his other hand close to his chest as his whole body shook as he had started to sob. "Wilhelm, what happened?"

Wide blue eyes looked up at her as quivering lips pursed, before he had held up his hand to show her the small cut at the tip of his index finger, a drop of red blood seeping out from under his skin. "Mama…" his whine continued, just as she gently took his injured hand to examine it further while the other came up to his face as he rubbed his eyes.

"Did you get pricked?" Anna had come just a moment later, lowering herself down beside the older sister, eyes examining the flower bush that was closest to them, and the young Prince had nodded somberly. Indeed, red roses had grown beautifully, enchanting to those that lingered around the garden. No wonder Wilhelm had been here, he must have wanted to pick one.

"Oh darling," her thumb gently brushed against the cut, dismissing of the blood, before she had brought it up to her lips, giving a kiss. "There. Do you feel better?" Wilhelm had nodded then, though he still his lips pursed. It was more likely that he was in shock more than pain, perhaps feeling a little betrayed too by the flower.

Getting back up onto her feet, she had taken her son's hand as she led the way back toward the table, shaded away from the bright sunlight as it seemed that playtime had suddenly did not feel fun anymore for him, at least this moment. The second his mood had come back up; she knew without a doubt that he would be up and running again. Pulling him to sit on her lap -as there were only two seats that had been provided, she brushed away his auburn hair out of his face, noting that he would need another haircut soon, as timid fingers reached for the finger foods that had been brought out to accompany the sisters' afternoon tea.

"Why the roses hurt me?"

"It's the way to defend itself, Wilhelm." Anna answered even before the mother could, smiling at the way the boy had perked up in interest as she took a bite of the cake she had on her plate. "The roses are beautiful, right?" that had earned a nod from him. "It needs a way to defend itself from mischievous fingers like yours."

The Princess had meant it as a tease to the boy, but Wilhelm had scowled, shoulders slumping down. "But I want to give one to Mama." He admitted, rather sadly. "It's so pretty, just like her."

There was no way she could hold back the chuckle that escaped her lips at the compliment her son had for her, assured that when he grown older, he would have been even more similar to his Father in the term of being charming, women would have easily fallen for him. "Why thank you, my darling Prince. But the next time, just call out for me to come to you, alright? So that we can admire the flowers without taking them away."

"But why?"

"Because picking them means we're taking them away from their home." Anna explained, leaning forward as her elbows rest against the surface of the table. "And then they will be sad."

"Why would they be sad?"

"Because they will be away from their loved ones."