Friday morning found Elsa tromping through the forest, her hair and leggings soaked after her hour-long ride with Nokk had turned into a three hour long game of tag between them, the rock giants, and Gale. She knew her way back to the village easily enough that she didn't need to look up...which was good, since she stared down at her hands and spoke in stilted Northuldran phrases.
With each word, Elsa counted another finger
"My name...Elsa. Cheese...where?"
Dimly aware of the shouts of children beyond the next tree-filled rise, Elsa rustled a few twigs out of her hair as she ducked her head and counted off a few more words. Murmured, with cheeks rosy.
"You...pretty...go...date…"
Leaves crunched underfoot as Elsa crested the next hill, wriggled her way through a mess of underbrush...and promptly halted.
One familiar voice, and Elsa blushed again as she tried not to peer through the dense foliage. A moment later, Gale foiled that plan completely by whooshing against the foliage and sweeping a patch away neatly. Elsa shot a hunted glare up at the whistling wind and shrugged heavily...before giving in to the urge.
"You've really got an ear for this." Honeymaren folded her arms over a green and tan cloak featuring the side-by-side symbols of Northuldra and Arendelle. She flawlessly switched to her native tongue. "Elsa told me you were more of a natural, and now I see why."
Seated on the same log, Anna tugged her hair out of its sharp, queenly up-do, and immediately shook her head along with a nonchalant wave. "Most of what...I know is what I remember from the lullabies and...and...fairy tales Mom told us at...bed time." She waved at Olaf as the peppy snowman led a group of Northuldra children in a game of tag, then chuckled warmly. "I might know how to say stuff like...and then everybody married the fairy princess and they lived happily ever after. But give Elsa a few weeks and she's gonna be writing, like, how-to books on do-it-yourself Northuldra projects, in Northuldran."
The joy welling up in Elsa's chest at having spotted Anna quickly spiraled into flustered amazement.
You speak it so well...but what did you just say there?
Clearly impressed, Honeymaren switched fully to Northuldran and tucked her chin against her collar. A self conscious little smile followed. "When Ryder told me Elsa had asked him for language lessons, I mean...well, no, it's dumb."
Elsa's blush darkened, and she didn't even notice the shifted underbrush as it slowly crept back around and enveloped her.
My name! I heard it...twice! What are they...
Cheeks pinking, Anna jabbed a finger at Honeymaren and blurted out. "Pour!"
Honeymaren blanched, then smirked and cocked an eyebrow. "Um...pour?" She mimed upending a cup.
Anna giggled at her mistake, leaned in, and whispered. "Spill it, Honeymaren."
Just then, a barrel-sized boulder rolled right up behind Elsa, nudged her bottom, and she tumbled into the clearing with a harassed squeal.
Anna and Honeymaren shrieked as an inch-thick layer of snow plopped right over them.
Several miles away, the low rumble of rock-giant laughter echoed through the forest.
Blushing brightly, Honeymaren hopped right to her feet...and her cap fell right off. Her stare locked onto the ground. "Elsa! Hi, Elsa! We were just talking about...not, not not not talking about…" She stumbled backwards over her cap, snatched it up, and tugged it on inside out. A pleading stare in Anna's direction followed.
Anna managed to compose herself, barely biting back laughter at her sister's apocalyptic, leaf-riddled hair. "Going to...um...check on the reindeer?"
Elsa glanced up pathetically and nearly latched onto Anna's feet.
Inching backwards another few steps, Honeymaren fiddled with her cap again and croaked out her thanks. "Y-yeah. You know it. Those brats are a full-time job." Only after another backstep did she muster the nerve to look at Elsa. "Enjoy your company. See you...later?"
Face crimson, Elsa braced a forearm at the ground and pushed herself up just enough to pull back her tangled hair. Still, she couldn't help but smile, and bid her friend goodbye with one of her newest Northuldran words.
"Cheese."
At that, Honeymaren yanked her cap off again and mashed it against her mouth, before turning and hightailing it out of there.
Anna giggled softly, then reached over and plucked a few leaves out of Elsa's hair. "Wow. That was just…"
Elsa crawled over to the log, curled her hands against her cheeks, and let out a high-pitched whine.
"I know."
As this was Anna's first visit to the Enchanted Forest since her coronation, she was jam-packed with updates from Arendelle that were far too interesting to merely write about. Nevertheless, she grinned and touched Elsa's knee and asked who should speak first.
Elsa warbled gratefully. "Please, tell me things." Her hand curled over Anna's, and a genuine smile followed. "Good things...I hope."
Anna didn't miss a beat, shuffling a bit closer, until Elsa's head fell against her shoulder. "Well, first, everybody misses you...and sends their love."
Right after nodding her way through listening to Elsa's complex answer to a foreign currency exchange question, Anna shot a sly sidelong glance and slipped in an observation.
"You're in love."
Elsa nodded automatically, opened her mouth to respond, and slammed it shut as her brain ground to a halt. She gulped hotly, stared down at her toes curling in her sandals, and dimly wondered why she couldn't hear Gale whirling around overhead any more.
"Yeah. I...really am." Relief flooded Elsa's words, and she barely recognized her own voice as she sagged heavily against Anna's side. "At first, I didn't know what was going on." A nervous little laugh, a slow head shake, and Elsa let out a shaky breath as she slid her feet underneath the leaf-covered forest floor. "I kind of...still don't."
"Elsa."
A non-committal murmur.
"Elsa."
Elsa pressed her cold hand against her warm face and warbled.
"Y-yeah?"
Anna leaned in and touched her forehead to Elsa's temple. "So, does cheese have some kind of a special meaning between you and Maren?"
Elsa grumbled sharply, wrapped her arms around Anna's shoulders, and mashed her face against thick cloak fabric. Grumbles turned to exasperated laughter, and soon, Elsa's shoulders were shaking.
