I apologize for the long wait on this next chapter. I've been working on this fic over the past year, just not posting. I have every intention of finishing this fic, hopefully without any more long breaks. I have two other projects I'm going to start posting as well.

Someday I'll learn how to finish a fic without taking a year-long hiatus in the middle!

Anna paused outside the door of the library, her hand hovering near the door, poised to knock. She bit down on her lower lip, worrying it between her teeth.

"We don't have to talk to them," Kristoff said gently from where he was waiting behind her. "We could give them space tonight and try to talk to them again tomorrow."

Anna sighed and shook her head. "It was weird enough not having them at dinner. I need to talk to them now, I can't handle this much tension."

Kristoff opened his mouth to respond but Anna had already knocked and pushed open the door. He followed close behind and almost ran into her when she stopped walking just past the doorway.

Elsa and Sera were set up on one of the couches in the seating area on the east side of the library. Sera was sitting upright with a book in one hand and her other hand stroking Elsa's hair as Elsa laid her head in her lap. Sera turned her head to give Anna a faint smile when she entered. Elsa stiffened, but didn't look toward the door.

There was a beat of awkward silence until Anna clapped her hands and walked toward the couch. "We should do something together!" Anna said, a bit too loudly. She cleared her throat and lowered her voice. "We can, um…charades! Let's play charades."

Sera looked down at Elsa, who was still staring at the ceiling and refusing to look at Anna. "We can try charades," Sera said slowly. "But I don't think we'll be up for playing for very long."

Anna waved a hand at Sera and went to the other side of the library. There was a silver bowl with crumpled pieces of paper from the last time they played charades still sitting on a shelf. "You don't have to play for long," she said as she grabbed the bowl and hurried back to them. "Just two or three rounds." Anna forced a smile, which faltered when she saw how unenthusiastic everyone else was. "Come on, it'll be fun!"

Kristoff went to stand behind the couch, situating himself at the end opposite Elsa as the door to the library swung open and Olaf walked into the room.

"Hello! I didn't know we were all hanging out, why didn't anyone tell me?" Olaf paused for a second, looking from Anna's pained smile to Elsa still staring determinedly at the ceiling. "Wow, okay, a little tense in here." He glanced at the bowl of charades papers in Anna's hands. "Oh, good idea, a game! That should loosen everyone up. Or it might make things worse. Let's find out!" He sat down in front of the couch, bouncing his feet eagerly as he waited for Anna to begin.

Anna cleared her throat again and started riffling through the bowl until she seized a slip of paper. She set the bowl down on a nearby chair to smooth out the paper, catching herself before she mouthed the word as she read. She looked up, her smile a bit more genuine this time. "Ready?" she asked. Everyone but Elsa nodded, which Anna tried to ignore.

Anna launched into a series of motions, gesturing frantically as Kristoff and Olaf shouted out guesses. Elsa winced at their yelling but sat up to watch Anna, her hands folded carefully in her lap.

"Sea horse!" Kristoff finally shouted.

Anna jumped and clapped her hands. "Yes, that's it!" She stood still for a moment to catch her breath, then went to the table to pick up the bowl of papers. She turned to face the group and hesitated, trying to decide who would go next. "Elsa," she finally said, stepping closer to the couch. "You're next."

Elsa looked at the bowl Anna was offering her, then at Sera, who gave her an encouraging smile. Elsa sighed and reached into the bowl for a slip of paper. After she read it, she stood up and moved to the center of the seating area while Anna took her place on the couch.

Elsa stood in front of them for a few seconds without moving, then flailed her hands in small circles. She looked at Sera, who shrugged and gestured for her to keep going. Elsa bit her lip and looked down at her hands before making another series of vague movements. This went on for another ten seconds until Elsa's face changed, her brow furrowing and her lips pressing together tightly.

Sera immediately stood up and rushed to pull Elsa into a hug. "I think we're done for today," she said over her shoulder. "But thanks for trying to play."

Anna hung her head as Sera and Elsa left the room. She felt tears gathering in her eyes as Kristoff hurried to sit next to her and wrap an arm around her shoulders.

"That was really stupid of me," Anna said, sniffling as tears began to run down her face. "Why am I so stupid?"

"You're not stupid," Kristoff said, shifting his hand to rub her back. "It was a mistake, but that's okay. Elsa and Sera will forgive you."

Anna shook her head and leaned into Kristoff's side. "But I keep doing this. They ask me for space and then I don't listen and push them too far. Why can't I learn to be better about this?"

Kristoff sighed. "I think it's just hard for you to see people you care about feeling unhappy. Your instinct is to try to make them feel better by doing something for them, but if they need space, that doesn't feel like enough to you and you try to do more." He sat silently for a moment until he could tell that Anna had absorbed what he was saying. "And, yes, you do end up pushing people to far sometimes. But I think you need to keep in mind that this comes from a good place. You want to help the people you love. You just haven't figured out all the details yet."

Anna took a deep breath and nodded before returning Kristoff's embrace. "Thank you. You always know just what to say. I don't know what I would do without you." She took another slow breath, then flopped back against the couch. "Ugh, I feel terrible right now. Can you think of anything that would make me feel better?"

Kristoff froze, his mind darting to the small ring box in his pocket. "Um…well, uh, I can think of something that might—"

Anna's face brightened and she jumped up from the couch. "I should go see if Elsa is still awake."

Kristoff frowned. "Anna, didn't we just talk about—"

"I'm not going to push her again," Anna said, moving her hands in a reassuring gesture. "I just think she might have trouble sleeping after everything that happened today and I remember what helped her fall asleep when we were kids. If it works, it will make her feel better and hopefully she'll forgive me." Anna darted forward to kiss Kristoff on the cheek before running to the door. "Thank you, I love you so much!"

Kristoff watched the door swing shut behind her and sighed. He pulled the ring box out of his pocket and flipped it open, running his finger across its smooth surface to remove a speck of dust. "I love you, too," he mumbled.

"I love you, too, Kristoff," Olaf said as he stood up and patted Kristoff's knee. "Well, that went terribly. I'm going to go to bed. Hopefully everyone will be in a better mood tomorrow." He gave Kristoff's knee another pat before waddling to the door.

Kristoff rolled his eyes and put the ring back into his pocket. "I sure hope so," he said as he got up to follow Olaf out of the room.