The Ice Behind Bars
Chapter XVII : Sisterly Bond
Anna watched her unknowingly sister who was staring happily into the sunset. She never felt so… Proud. She knew that this strange feeling wasn't just a 'Normal Happy' sentiment. No; it was a new sensational feeling. Why was her heart racing in delight? She saw many of her other friends' joyful moment and she always felt glad for them. But this?... This was a feeling beyond glad. Why was specifically Elsa's happy moment made her that happy? She felt as if the more Elsa was happy the more she became ecstatic, and that it wasn't in her control to choose this emotion. She just welcomed the feeling without dwelling about the idea.
"Anna," Rapunzel interrupted Anna's thoughts with a gentle, low voice. "I think if you keep crying you'll end up dry." She joked.
Anna snapped out of her thoughts and quickly wiped her tears off her cheeks before she chuckled a bit, "I'm sorry…" She sniffled, "I was just… Lost in thoughts." She chuckled again, "Damn… I never was that emotional. It's like I'm a total different person." She deadpanned.
Rapunzel laughed a bit, "Well, let's thank Elsa for that." She said while she pointed at Elsa who was still enjoying her moment.
"Yeah…" Anna replied while she smiled at Elsa fondly.
"Anna? Why are you crying?" Zoey asked innocently as she squeezed her hug tighter on Anna's waist.
Anna and Rapunzel looked down at the little girl with a smile. "Because I'm happy, sweety." Anna replied while she stroke Zoey's head. "I'm really, really happy."
Zoey squeezed her cheek more on Anna's waist and looked at Elsa happily. "I'm really happy too."
Anna and Rapunzel's smile grew at the little girl proudly. Looks like she's already fond of Elsa. Anna thought.
Meanwhile…
Elsa was staring at the sunset calmly. She just couldn't get enough of it. A sense of a warm feeling crept around her when she remembered who brought her that joy. She knew they were staring at her, but she didn't want to turn and look at them. No one ever did something good to her. Ever. They fed her, they treated her the most kindly and nicely, they healed her, helped her ease her pain and the weirdest thing was… They saved her from that hell. Why would they do that? Why would they risk their lives to do such a thing? She thought to herself. Since the moment she woke up, they never laid a hand on her roughly or hit her or hurt her for that matter. She bit her lip in worry. She had no idea how to thank them. Heck, she had no idea if she could still fully trust them. No… No, they wanna hurt me. They are just acting! She thought afraid. Aren't they? She thought again. It's been only a day. Yet that day was her first painless day since forever. And she would cherish it until her last breath. But the day have ended. And her worry was back. What would they do to me now? Would they… throw me back? She thought worriedly. Hurt me for fun like Mad did? Hurt me if they got angry at me like Papa? No… No they are nice, they are nice!... They didn't hurt me. All what they did so far was being kind, right? She sighed in frustration since she didn't know if she could trust them. Her heart was telling her to, but her mind had other ideas. She suddenly felt a bit of dizziness and pain in her stomach, so she winced and hissed in discomfort before she hunched a bit and squeezed her wound with her arm so she could forget about the stinging.
Anna quickly noticed that Elsa was swaying a bit, so she ran to her. "Hey…" She said and unconsciously placed a worried hand on Elsa's shoulder while the other was underneath Elsa's elbow so she could steady her. "I think that's enough for today. You need to rest." She said with a concerned tone.
Elsa tensed a bit but quickly relaxed as she saw Anna's honest smile and felt the soothing warmth from her gentle hands seeped through her cold shoulder and elbow. She stared at Anna questionably. Why are you doing this? Why are you helping me? I don't understand… Why would someone help me?!... Of all the people… Me?! She thought instead of asking.
Anna's smile grew. Oh my god, she's allowing me to help her! She thought excitedly. Okay… why am I even excited? It's not like it's a big deal, right?... But IT IS! "Come on, Elsa. It's getting dark." She said with a soothing voice while she rubbed Elsa's shoulder to encourage her and motioned for her that it's time to go. Anna felt her heart flutter in joy when she swore she might have seen a tiny grin on Elsa's face while she was turning to go down the hill. Was she smiling to me?!
Rapunzel's eyes widened at the scene. Elsa tensed at Anna's touch instinctively but she didn't flinch. Instead, she just nodded at Anna and was going to allow her to help her down the hill without hesitation. Well, they are sisters anyway… Separated by accident, joined by love.
"Did you have fun, Elsa?!" Zoey exclaimed happily.
Elsa looked at the little girl and nodded with a petite smile.
Zoey pounced in joy and ran to hug Elsa. "Yeay!" She shouted happily but Rapunzel quickly caught her and lifted her up on her shoulder.
"Okay, missy! I think that's good for today. And your parents are definitely worried about you." Rapunzel said while she followed Anna and Elsa down the hill, and Zoey on her shoulder.
"Awwwww!" Zoey whined while she crossed her tiny arms and frowned childishly.
Rapunzel shook her head in amusement and chuckled a bit at the girl's antics. She really reminds me of Anna when we were little… Well, she did actually spent most of her life with Anna, so that's not a surprise.
When they re-entered the fort, the first thing they were welcomed with were the three men, Aiden, Flynn and Kristoff.
"Where were you, guys?" Rapunzel whispered while she held a sleeping Zoey in her arms and rested the little girl's head on her shoulder.
"Training the hounds." Aiden deadpanned, and his humored voice betrayed him.
The other men smirked a bit and the women only looked at them in confusion.
"Okaaaayy…" Anna said with a suspiciously raised eyebrow.
"So where were you?" Flynn asked.
"Oh, we were just showing Elsa something." Anna replied with a smirk while she gave Elsa a small push on the back so she could keep walking towards the sanctuary with her. "Elsa and I are tired. So if you would excuse us, we are going to back to the sanctuary. Ba-Baaiiii!" She waved and said with a sing-song voice before both she and Elsa left the wondering men with Rapunzel and a sleeping Zoey.
"What is she talking about? Did we miss anything?" Aiden asked.
"Ohhh, you missed a lot." Rapunzel teased.
"What do you mean?" Flynn asked.
Rapunzel pushed playfully the edge of her lips up in a wide smile with her left hand's index and thumb.
The men gasped. "We missed another smile?!" Aiden asked in a disappointed shock, and cursed himself for leaving the girls to deal with the 'wolves'. Now he missed an angel's smile… Just great.
Rapunzel raised a teasing surprised eyebrow at him. "And why do you care so much?" She asked with a teasingly humored tone.
"W-What?" Aiden replied nervously as he realized how he sounded. "Uh… n-nothing, just asking." He covered up but perfectly failed.
"Aaaaahh, I seeee." Rapunzel said teasingly.
Aiden blushed but thanked the night's darkness for hiding his pink-red cheeks. "U-Uh… Wow! It's really hot tonight!... I think I-I'm tired and I really n-need to rest too, soooo… Y-Yeah, goodnight." He stammered before he quickly turned and headed for the sanctuary not waiting for the other men to follow.
Rapunzel giggled before she turned to Flynn and gave him a kiss on the cheek and bid both him and Kristoff goodnight. "Goodnight, you guys. I have to take Zoey to her parents first." Rapunzel informed. "And be sure to check on that big oaf, before his cheeks could explode from the heat." She said with a wink.
The men were confused at first but they shrugged the idea off. "Aren't you coming after?" Flynn asked.
"Well… I have to visit someone first." She answered.
"But it's late." Flynn asked a bit worried.
"I know, but the person is craving to know what happened today with Elsa more than any of you." She hinted before she nodded goodbye at Kristoff and each of them walked their own way.
Rapunzel knocked on the small wooden shack's door and waited while still holding the sleeping, snoring Zoey.
The door opened and revealed a brown haired woman: Zoey's mother.
"Oh, thank goodness." The woman sighed in relief. "I was starting to worry." She said before Rapunzel passed her Zoey gently and took a step back.
"Yeah, sorry about that. We were at the hill, watching the sunset with… The princess." Rapunzel said shyly while she rubbed the back of her neck.
"Oh… So the rumors are true? There really is a princess here? And just like they said… She's… you know…" Zoey's mother trailed off and didn't have the courage to say it.
Rapunzel nodded sadly. "Yeah… she's quite hurt." Rapunzel confirmed. A lot.
"And dangerous." A sudden thick manly voice was heard from behind Zoey's mother.
Rapunzel frowned and tried to see who dared say something like that. A man showed up to the door and stood right next to Zoey's mother with a stern look on his face.
"Excuse me, sir. But she's not dangerous as you think she is. She's really harmless… In fact, she's really nice." Rapunzel defended.
"Then how can you explain the ice magic?" The man argued while he stood all puffed up with an intimidating face.
"Should I keep reminding everyone that she was scared more than a mouse in a cage? She didn't mean any of this to happen, mister." Rapunzel said with an angry tone in her voice.
The man scoffed in frustration, unconvinced. "Just keep her away from my daughter, do you hear me?" He intimidated.
Rapunzel laughed a bit sarcastically, "Well, you should tell that to your daughter cause she'll be the one who wants to spend more time with the princess whom you're scared of." She said while she pointed at the sleeping Zoey. "Even your daughter liked her. So I think you can trust that proof enough."
"Ulriiiic…" His wife whispered with both a scolding and worried tone.
Ulric turned with a scoff and went back inside the room. "Whatever."
Zoey's mother turned to Rapunzel again with an apologetic smile. "Please forgive my husband's behavior. He can be a bit… grumpy at night." She informed.
"No, it's okay. I understand his worry for his daughter. But really now, Princess Elsa is really kind and would never hurt anyone… Especially Zoey." She clarified as she remembered how Elsa recoiled away from Zoey and said that she just didn't want to hurt her.
"I'm sorry, dear. But my husband wouldn't just believe a woman's words. He needs evidence." The woman explained.
Rapunzel felt a bit insulted but she shook the idea away and stared at the woman incredulously. "Oh, so he believes some rumors about Elsa being dangerous and won't going to believe mine and his daughter's words?" She laughed bitterly. "How fair he is."
"Just give him time. I think he can cope with living in a fort with a… woman who can easily take someone's life with the flick of her finger."
Rapunzel sighed. "You need to understand that she is scared of herself more than you are scared of her. Can you believe it?"
"And how is that so-"
"None of you saw how she'd been left exposed and hanging from her wrists to bleed to death!" Rapunzel said with a loud angry voice that made Zoey stir a little in her mother's arms.
The woman went speechless as she stared in disbelieve at Rapunzel.
Rapunzel sighed and tried to calm herself down and not to strangle all these ignorant people. "I'm sorry. I… I should leave you to your slumber, now. Excuse me." She said, turned and walked away without waiting for the woman to respond. She just left her dumbfounded and jaw-slacked.
These people are so stupid that they just allow themselves to see what they want to see without caring about the truth. She thought angrily as she stormed her way to the infirmary. I guess at least Aphrodite would understand.
Aphrodite sat on her new bed in the infirmary, since she decided to move her room to the infirmary's bedchamber quarters. What's taking her so long?! Did something happen to Elsa or Anna?! She thought worriedly. She stood up and started pacing back and forth in concern. She said she would be here tonight. She hugged her middle with her arms in anxiety. Come on, Rapunzel. Where are you? Just as if she was answered, a knock on the door snapped her out of her thought. "Come in." She allowed.
The door opened slowly and revealed Rapunzel. "H-Hey." She greeted with a smile. How the hell am I going to tell her that her daughter had been tortured for fifteen years!?
Aphrodite let out a breath she never knew she kept in relief. "Hey." She greeted back with a tiny relieved chuckle. Someone looks nervous.
The two stood awkwardly in silence, unsure on where to start or what to do until Aphrodite spoke. "Well?..." She asked.
"Oh! Haha, sorry! I was just lost in thoughts. Um, shall we sit first." Rapunzel bought some time.
"Of course… Here, take a seat." Aphrodite informed with a reassuring smile while she pointed at the table with two chairs at the sides.
Rapunzel nodded before she went to the table and sat on one of the chairs.
Aphrodite turned and walked to the tiny kitchen in the corner. "Water? Tea?... Hot Chocolate?" She asked.
"Hot chocolate, please." Rapunzel informed politely. Just keep the conversation going. Keep your cool. Don't sound nervous and don't swea- God damn it she's a queen for goodness sake! How can't I be nervous?! She said while she danced her legs on the ball of her feet in anxiety.
Aphrodite felt Rapunzel's unease and that didn't make her feel any better, so she decided to help the girl calm down. "I swear Anna and you keep drinking this thing and I feel like Anna's gonna blow someday." She joked while she prepared the drink.
"Yeah," Rapunzel chuckled a bit, "I have no idea how she can manage to store all that fat somewhere invisible." She joked back and made Aphrodite laugh a bit. That a good sign.
"Well, I guess she got that from me… Since… Since it's actually my favorite drink too." Aphrodite confessed with a tiny, barely visible blush.
Rapunzel looked at Aphrodite with an incredulous and playful face, "You love Hot Chocolate too?" She asked while she pointed at the queen. "I-I mean since you know… You're Queen and all, and I thought maybe something more formal like tea or some royal stuff." Keep it going… Just tell her the good stuff.
"Royal stuff?" Aphrodite asked with a playful smirk. "Being Queen doesn't mean that I can't love something like Hot Chocolate." Aphrodite informed. "I'm a human queen, not a mythical creature."
Rapunzel's eyes widened as she realized what she just said. "I-I didn't m-mean it like… Oh, god please forgive me, I-I-" Rapunzel tried to reason and apologize to the queen.
"Rapunzel!" Aphrodite cut her off so she could calm the girl down. "It's okay I was just joking! You don't need to get all nervous." She said while she giggled.
Rapunzel stared at Aphrodite in disbelieve. Joke?... Since when you joke?! Since when you laugh!? She thought before she gulped nervously. "Y-Yeah… sorry." She said. She doesn't need to hear the bad and sad stuff in the middle of the night, right? Yeah! Just tell her how happy Elsa was. Yeah!
Aphrodite finished the drinks and held two cups of Hot Chocolate before she walked towards the table, gave Rapunzel her drink and sat on the other chair that faced Rapunzel on the other side of the table.
Rapunzel took the cup with a grateful smile, "Thank you." She said.
Aphrodite nodded while she smiled a bit sadly and waited for the news to come out of the blonde's mouth. She took one sip before she spoke again. "So tell me. Um… How… How was Elsa today?... Was she s-scared or… You know, since it's a new place to her. A-And her wounds? How was she feeling?" She asked with a low and sad voice.
Rapunzel took a big sip before she placed the cup on the table and readied herself for an answer. "Well, at first we introduced her to Olly and Sally and the others. To say the truth she was pretty scared at first. But she felt better later. When we went out," She laughed a bit, "You should have seen the look on her face as she stared with big eyes at the fort as if she never saw something so interesting."
Aphrodite smiled a bit, yet she felt a bit worried since Elsa looked like she never saw people or a fort before. "And…?"
Don't let her sense your nervousness and don't sound as if you're hiding anything! Rapunzel scolded herself before she spoke again. "She still feel a bit of pain, but it's much better than before. She also met Bulda- OH! And she also gave her a blue rose that Elsa really really loved."
"I should thank Bulda for that later." Aphrodite said as she smiled at the thought of Bulda's kindness.
"Yeah… Ouh! And guess what!? She met little Zoey!" Rapunzel said happily.
"Little Zoey? The one and only little Zoey?!" Aphrodite asked with a smirk.
Rapunzel giggled a bit, "Yeah… Zoey really likes her too." Rapunzel noted. "Elsa felt a bit… unease around Zoey. She was really scared that she would hurt her. Looks like she reminds her of Anna when they were little since we both know Anna was really the one who spent most of the time with Zoey."
Aphrodite's face turned sad again and she took a sip from her drink and tried to hide her tears since she now know that her daughter was still blaming herself for hitting Anna with her magic.
Rapunzel noticed Aphrodite's sadness and mentally slapped herself. God! Why did I tell her that! The woman deserves some happiness for goodness sake too! She thought, angry at herself. "Uhm, and Zoey actually gave us an idea that made Elsa really… really happy." She informed and smiled when she saw Aphrodite's head snapped up in eagerness to know that her tortured daughter was happy.
"Uh-huh!" Rapunzel confirmed. "We took her to see the sunset and she was… God, she was soooo happy even to a point of tears! She then started laughing! A-And Aphrodite… Elsa was crying… In JOY!" She laughed, "And then Anna started crying herself too." Oh god, Aphrodite you missed soooo much. She thought instead of saying since she knew that would have only upset the queen.
Aphrodite's face lit up with the most joyful manner that Rapunzel ever saw. The cup of Hot Chocolate could have fallen from her hands if it weren't for the table in front of her. Tears of joy ran down her cheeks and she started laughing in joy and her heart just felt warm, knowing that her daughter really was happy. She's happy! She's happy!... With her sister! She was happy with her sister! My daughters! My… My babies!
Nailed it. Rapunzel thought proudly and praised herself for telling Aphrodite only the good news for tonight.
"Elsa is soooo nice, Aphrodite. She's really kind and sweet." Rapunzel said and made Aphrodite the more proud and happy. She giggled a bit, "She's a bit shy, I can tell you that. I still don't know if she's a bit playful and energetic like her sister. But I'm not going to rush to know that. Of course we should all give her time to open up." Then her face turned to a frown when she remembered Zoey's father and mother, and how they thought of Elsa as a dangerous woman. She didn't notice herself stood up in irritation and started flailing her hands in frustration. "I just still can't believe how some people still see her like she's dangerous! She's really the warmest person ever! People really are blind and stupid!" Rapunzel was yelling to herself in anger and didn't notice Aphrodite stood too and walked towards her.
Aphrodite just saw how Rapunzel was yelling and defending her daughter. She just felt something towards the blonde girl that she never felt before. Rapunzel really did care about her daughter, and she just couldn't help but feel fond of the blondy. She smiled at Rapunzel before she stood and walked towards her.
"It's just frustrating! How dare they say something like that about Elsa! I swear they are the real monst-" Rapunzel was saying when she felt a hand on her shoulder that turned her and what came next just made her freeze in place in utter disbelieve.
Aphrodite turned Rapunzel and wrapped her in a huge warm hug. She didn't know why she wanted to hug Rapunzel, but she felt the real need to do it. Maybe a way of saying 'Thank you'?
Rapunzel froze in place. Her eyes wide in disbelieve. Aphrodite… of all people! Aphrodite. The one who was always stiff, stern and cold and never showed any sign of soft emotions before towards anyone other than her daughters, just hugged her. She didn't know what happened to her but she accepted the hug gratefully with utter happiness and hugged back.
"Thank you." She heard Aphrodite whispered.
"For what?" Rapunzel asked and felt Aphrodite squeezed harder.
"For staying with my daughters and keeping them safe when I can't." Aphrodite said while tears streamed down her face.
Rapunzel's smiled and patted Aphrodite's back. "Hey, we're all family here, remember? We all should stay strong for each other. And… I feel like Elsa is like a sister to me already." She confessed.
"I'm sorry…" Aphrodite suddenly said.
"What?... for what?!" Rapunzel asked confused and broke from the hug to look at Aphrodite's tears.
"I… I was always harsh on you all and never realized that you would do all this for my daughters… for me." Aphrodite said ashamed. "I don't deserve such kindness."
Rapunzel smiled at the broken mother again and wrapped her back in a hug in which Aphrodite didn't refuse.
"It's okay. Don't say that. You weren't harsh." Rapunzel reassured. You were just a heart broken mother who thought she lost her daughter.
The two stayed like this for a while and Rapunzel allowed the broken and stressed mother to sob on her shoulder. Rapunzel made soothing circles with her hand on the queen's back. She knew that Aphrodite was holding her feelings in a bottle for a very long time. But this bottle just broke. Even a Queen needs someone to help her. Everyone needs a crying shoulder, anyway. And I'm sure Aphrodite wanted one for a long time.
Anna pushed the bedroom door open and motioned for Elsa to go inside. "Ahhh, I'm so tiiired!" Anna whined in a childish way before she plumped face-planted like a star on the bed that she told the others before to move it here, to Elsa's room, which is now both Anna and Elsa's room.
Elsa stood in the middle of the room, unsure on what to do while holding the rose pot.
"Just place it next to the window where the morning sun will hit it directly." Anna informed while pointing at the window, her voice muffled from the mattress since her face was still planted in it and she was exhausted enough that she didn't bother to turn on her back.
Elsa turned slowly to the window. She winced a bit as she limped her way there because her injuries and placed the pot on the table that was right under the window. She smiled again at the rose and remembered Bulda. The old cow that didn't ran out of milk. She mentally laughed at the woman's behavior. Bulda was the one who actually gave her the only gift that she ever received.
Elsa frowned a bit since she wasn't sure if it was a perfect spot for her favorite rose. Would the sun rays hit here? She wondered. She pushed it further next towards the window, then a little to the left, then a little to the right, then backwards again. She was concerned that the sun rays wouldn't hit the rose and that if they didn't, it would cause the rose to die. Her favorite and only gift to die.
Anna noticed Elsa's silence, lifted her head and rolled to her side to check on Elsa. When she saw how Elsa's arms were crossed and how she was glaring at the rose as if commanding it to take her own spot for the sun, she laughed. "Don't worry, Elsa… Hehe… The window is large enough for the sun rays to hit the rose wherever you might decide to put it."
Elsa let her hands fall to her side, bit her lip and blushed a bit in embarrassment since she definitely looked ridiculous by having a mental fight with herself for deciding where the perfect spot for the rose was supposed to be.
"I think just like this is perfect." Anna said while she pointed at the rose, a bit of giggle still in her voice.
Satisfied by the rose's spot-and that Anna helped her to choose where it should have been exactly-she nodded at the rose then turned to face the room. She stood again in silence and unsure on what to do next.
"We should probably change into our nightgowns." Anna suggested. "Ughh, this armor is killing me." She whined while she unfastened her leather chest vest. "Oh, and Elsa?... Here, take this." Anna said before she moved to the wardrobe and pulled a sky blue satin silk nightgown out from the drawer. Elsa took it gently in her hands then just stood there. How am I going to get out of that thing first?! Elsa thought confused.
Anna remembered that Elsa had serious injuries and that she couldn't change on her own. "You probably need some help." Anna suggested.
Elsa nodded slowly and a bit ashamed that she couldn't do it on her own, but Anna's frank smile forced Elsa's worries away.
After a few groans and moans of pain, and small stiffness and flinches from Elsa, Anna finally managed to remove Elsa's old dirt stained dress and helped her put on the new comfortable nightgown. While she was helping Elsa though, she took sight of Elsa's bandaged torso, arms and legs and saw the other scars and just couldn't help to stop her anger and craving for the suffer of the 'Poopy Father'-since that was the king's new title between Anna and her friends-from growing. After she heard Elsa's groans of pain, that didn't help at all at decreasing her anger too. She's still in pain and I can't do anything about it! She thought in anger at the king and at herself.
After the accomplished mission of helping Elsa, the sight in front of Anna just broke her heart. The nightgown was long enough to cover up till Elsa's knees. But it didn't quite cover the injuries. Anna cursed everything around her but she quickly shook the idea away and decided not to show Elsa any sign that she was angry or that she can clearly see her injuries. So she then moved to change in her own nightgown.
Meanwhile, Elsa stood in the middle of the room uncertain on what to do. While she looked around and inspected the room, she distractingly brought her right hand to brush her left arm and forgot that it was broken. "Ow!" She suddenly yelped and quickly removed her right hand off of her left arm when she felt the pain.
Anna quickly poked her head from behind the dressing screen. "Wow, be careful Elsa! Your arm is still broken and we don't wanna damage it now, don't we?" Anna said with a gentle voice.
Elsa glared at her bandaged arm with a childish frown as if she was having an eye to eye contest… with the bandage.
Anna laughed again before she walked out from behind the dressing screen and sat on her bed, "Goodness, Elsa! You r-really keep making me laugh!"
Elsa snapped out of her war world with the bandage and looked at Anna before she gave her a goofy, shy smile. What did I even do to make her laugh? She wondered. Yet she wasn't concerned since Anna looked like she really was laughing and not just acting it. Elsa didn't know why she felt happy when she saw Anna laughing in happiness, and especially since she was the cause of that laugh. She did feel a bit of pride but she had no idea why, yet the way Anna laughed was a bit familiar to her.
"W-we…" Anna tried to say while she tried and stop her laughs. She cleared her throat, then, "We should probably go to sleep, now. It was a long day." She suggested with a kind voice before she pointed at Elsa's bed.
Elsa turned to the bed that she woke up from this morning and walked towards it. When she sat on it she felt herself bounce from the mattress's elasticity, and it was actually… Fun! Elsa's eyes went wide and she smiled in wonder and bounced again on the mattress. She giggled a bit in glee, then bounced again, and again. The small bed racked up and down a bit and made creaking noises.
Anna watched Elsa's childlike behavior before she shook her head in amusement. "Hahaha… Elsa if you'll continue like that, the bed will break." Anna said as she heard the creaking noises coming out of Elsa's bed.
Elsa ceased her bounces and blushed. "Sorry…" She said shyly.
"Oh, no no! Don't apologize! In fact I always used to do that before I go to sleep. Actually, we would have done this if it weren't for your injuries." She said before she stood on her own bed, her tongue stuck out on the corner of her mouth, and she jumped high then turned her position to a sitting one in mid-air so she could land on her butt. But the moment she landed on the mattress again, CRASH! The bed crashed and broke completely underneath her.
Elsa gasped at the sight, she quickly ran unsteadily towards Anna in worry and knelt next to her. "Are you okay!?" She asked her voice displayed full concern. She tried to reach for Anna's hand to help her up but quickly recoiled them back when she remembered that these hands had hurt many people before.
Anna's limbs were shot in every direction and tangled by the bed sheets. She sat back up with a groan while she rubbed her forehead. "I really should stop eating chocolate." She said playfully while she patted her supposed to be fat belly and smiled at Elsa.
When Elsa kept staring in concern, Anna giggled a bit. "Don't worry, Elsa. I'm really okay. I'm not hurt, see?" She reassured while she waved her arms and legs.
When Elsa was sure that Anna was okay, she didn't know what happened to her, but she suddenly let out a bark of laughter and started laughing as she remembered how Anna looked like when she broke her bed.
Anna's heart flutter in joy when she heard Elsa laughing. As if her laughter was contagious, Anna started laughing at herself aloud too.
They both felt the same feeling. When they heard each other's laughter, they couldn't help the strong sense of warmth and peace from overwhelming their body. Anna felt utterly proud when she heard Elsa's angelic laughter. And Elsa felt utterly safe for the first time in years when she heard Anna's goofy one. At that moment, everything felt so natural. Anna forgot about the fact that she was having fun and laughing with a woman who spent fifteen years in a cage and Elsa forgot her misery and the fact that she was showing a sign of playfulness instead of fear in front of a woman she only knew for a day. Everything just seemed as if they've been living with each other for years. And they were both oblivious that this was the instinctive sisterly feeling towards each other.
When they finally felt their stomach ache from laughter, they suspended their laughs and looked at each other fondly for a sec unconsciously, before Elsa realized what just happened and quickly looked away. Her cheeks turned red from the blush and felt they could have exploded but her eyes widened in shock when she heard Anna's voice.
"I'm really happy that you're here, Elsa." Anna admitted fondly with a warmest smile she never knew she could put.
Elsa stared at Anna in disbelieve. Would someone really be happy when she was around? That's new.
"R-Really?!" Elsa asked in both disbelieve and joy.
Anna nodded again and placed a hand on Elsa's shoulder. "Really." She confirmed.
Elsa felt she would have just wrapped this woman in the most grateful hug, but there was a humongous and herculean force pulling her away and not allowing her to do such a thoughtless act. A force that accompanied her all her life… Fear. So instead she allowed Anna to pat her shoulder without any hesitation or fear of getting hurt.
"Okay, then. You are definitely tired and you should rest. Today was a big and tiresome day for you, so I think we better go to sleep, now." Anna informed and giggled a bit when she looked at the condition of her bed. If that what it was called anymore. "I think I made it look better, don't ya think?" She joked.
Elsa stiffened a giggle and nodded with a toothy smile before she started helping herself up from the ground.
"Here, let me help you." Anna suggested before she helped Elsa up easily this time without any hesitation or a sense of nervousness or stiffness in Elsa. Instead, Anna was surprised to hear Elsa say, "Thank you." Elsa said with a smile.
Anna's smile reached her ears, "You're welcome!" She quickly said aloud more than what she intended her voice to be.
Elsa walked back to her bed and sat. She smirked and bounced one last time playfully on purpose and made Anna laugh.
Anna laughed one last time before she plumped back on the bed-… Mattress. Since it was no longer a bed, and covered herself with the sheets. She blew some air on the candle on the night stand and extinguished the flames. Before she let her head fall on the pillow and closed her eyes. "Goodnight, Elsa." She said with a smile that never left her face.
Elsa laid herself slowly on the bed so she wouldn't feel the pains and aches before she adjusted herself in a sideway position, her back to Anna. "Goodnight… Anna." She replied with a very fond and warm smile that reached her ears but that Anna unfortunately missed to see. Goodnight… And she closed her eyes and went to peaceful sleep for the first time in years with her sister in the same room.
Separated by accident, joined by love.