Anna stood up easily even though her legs felt like they were made out of pudding at the moment. Outwardly she looked like the same bright and cheery Anna that she always was, but inside Anna felt almost sick to her stomach for what she was doing to her sister behind her back, even if nothing had actually happened. The strawberry blonde-haired girl smiled gently at the Duke as she began to lead him back toward the castle. "Thank you for coming with me today. I had a lot of fun. Too much fun." Anna laughed a little at that, but it was bitter-sweet when she thought about what this day of fun and flirting may have cost her.
At Anna's weak laughter, the Duke laughed back in similar tones. He lifted himself gingerly off the grass with only his fingers to lessen the dirt's impact upon his gloves before replying "You're welcome" to mirror Anna's cursory courtesy. Yet again, no words were needed; yet again, the Duke just knew what Anna kept unsaid, how the time for returning to the castle couldn't have come sooner. Not because of dislike (never dislike) but rather...liking each other's company too much. The Duke eyed longingly over the grass they had once sat upon, still freshly bent from their indentations. He was at an age where he should know better by default. So why then was he recalling the hot-blooded recklessness of his youth that wanted more? Wasn't Elsa alone good enough?
Before the Duke could stop himself, his mind took advantage of the open-ended question with images of Elsa and Anna together with him...no. The Duke shook his head reflexively for a split second before starting to walk after Anna towards the castle. Though he remained quiet as they headed back, his thoughts were gathering up a storm. Wanting more riches was one thing...but these were two women he cared about. How could he treat them like this? Knitting his brows together, the Duke gazed resolutely ahead. There was no way he could go back to pretending he projected Elsa onto Anna or that Anna was simply Elsa's younger sister. Anna...Anna was so much more to the Duke than something that trivial.
Remembering how Anna nearly died a stone's throw of months earlier caused the Duke to have a lump form at the base of his throat. But fortunately for the Duke, he and Anna made their way up the steps to the gate just in time to halt any memory's onslaught. It was then that the Duke stopped to regard Anna, the former storminess that clouded the blue in his eyes gradually passing away. "Anna," he started, the majority of what he wasn't able to convey trapped inside his gaze, "...I really should be the one thanking you."
Anna couldn't help but swallow into her unusually dry throat when she heard the Duke say that he should be thanking her. The words themselves on their face were simply polite talk, but the tone the Duke used when he said it…it made Anna feel butterflies in the pit of her stomach despite the earlier awkwardness and all of her guilty feelings. The young woman wasn't sure what to say. Usually, she'd have bitten into her lower lip or fiddled with one of her braids in such an uncomfortable situation, but this time was different. It wasn't awkward even after a long silence between them. As Anna and the Duke gazed into each other's blue eyes for what felt like far too long to Anna, she became intimately aware of his feelings toward her and of her feelings for him.
For better or worse - and Anna thought worse right now - the Duke was thinking about her instead of Elsa, or at least about both her and Elsa. However it had happened, Anna felt that she was equal to Elsa in the Duke's eyes. The feeling sent a shiver through Anna's spine. Anna stood there with the Duke in the vastly empty-feeling castle courtyard until Anna could take the silence no longer. "Please tell Elsa I'm sorry I kept you from her." Anna would tell Elsa all about her day with the Duke and apologize for it later, but for now it seemed right that Elsa should know why she was being made to wait. "Good night, Duke."
Something had passed between the Duke and Anna tonight. Whether fate, destiny, the Duke felt it to the bone, felt it in the church with Elsa (God's doing). What else could explain how right this was? Even the ongoing silence between him and Anna flowed like air into his lungs, like how to breathe. The silence didn't sink in like quicksand but provided a foundation for the Duke. He simply knew without knowing and somehow, it made sense to him. And so the Duke calmly said "I will" in response to Anna's request towards Elsa, the shame having departed him. His gaze remained steadfastly with Anna when he reassured her, "But I enjoyed our time together." Here was where he was supposed to be. "Good night, Anna."
Anna smiled gratefully at the Duke. Whether today was wrong or not, they had both enjoyed themselves and that made Anna happier than she thought possible. She felt warm all over, like her body was enveloped in an aura of pure love, caring and understanding. Even Anna's feelings of guilt could not bring her down, though she still resolved to talk to Elsa about what had happened today; her sister's happiness was of paramount importance to Anna. "I enjoyed it, too," Anna was compelled to say before they parted ways. She knew the Duke already had an idea of how much she enjoyed their time together, but she had to confirm it with words. "Good night," she said again, a tad more awkwardly.
Anna didn't want to leave this conversation like this- she had more to say, but it was time to let the Duke get back to Elsa. Elsa deserved to feel as good as Anna did right now. With some effort, Anna forced herself to start walking away. She wanted to look back at the Duke, but she thought that if she did, she would never be able to leave. It was for the best, Anna thought, because she had a lot of things she needed to think about tonight.