Always a Thief


"Soooo, I sort of have to admit something to you Elsa," Anna started hesitantly.

She was at the sink washing the bowls and spoons that they had eaten ice cream from. Anna had been insistent on doing them given that she, in her words, "broke in and everything."

Elsa didn't argue and instead was throwing away the empty container of ice cream they had demolished. "Oh? This should be good," she teased.

"Shut up. It's not like that," Anna huffed. "Okay… may- maybe it's a little like that."

"You need a place to stay?"

"No, no, that's not-"

"You need money."

"What? No, I don't ne-"

"Someone's after you?"

"No, Jesus, will you let me finish?" Anna scoffed as she shut off the sink and wiped a bowl dry. After she was done, she fiddled nervously with her hands. '"I found something," she said simply.

"Uh huh, and what did you find?" Elsa said as her tone dipped into a more serious register.

"Why don't we sit down?" Anna said cheerfully as she brushed past Elsa and took a seat on the sofa, patting the spot next to her.

As Elsa eased onto the sofa, Anna bent down and rummaged around in her bag that she had kept nearby. She muttered a few expletives to herself as she searched for whatever was so pressing at the moment while Elsa leaned back on one arm and simply observed Anna. After another minute or so, Anna withdrew a thick, manila folder containing a multitude of notes and papers as well as a small leather-bound journal.

Elsa recognized it immediately as their father's.

Anna set the items down, then turned to Elsa with a serious expression on her face. "Okay look, I didn't come here for purely… unselfish reasons," she stated.

Elsa felt a hot flash of shame, hurt, and understanding all at once as she realized where this conversation was heading. She became rigid in her seat, straightening her back and shifting uncomfortably.

"But before I go on, I know that you've made a bit of a life for yourself here… without me… and things seem to be going well for you," Anna said carefully. "And I don't expect you to just drop everything, no, I just- I want you to hear me out first okay? Before you make a decision," she continued.

Elsa nodded slowly, prompting Anna to elaborate.

"You're the only person in the world that I trust with this, and the only person I would want by my side if you… well, let me explain first."

"Okay, I'm listening," Elsa said.

Anna turned her attention towards Agnar's journal, opening it to an earmarked page that held an old black-and-white photograph of a man in a topcoat, wearing a fedora and standing next to a tall tree.

"Does the name Otto Rahn sound familiar to you?" Anna asked as she pointed to the photograph.

Elsa thought for a moment, racking her brain in recognition of the name she distantly remembered. "Vaguely. Some sort of Nazi occult researcher, no?

"Nazi grail researcher," Anna corrected. "I know, I know what you're going to say but please, just hear me out. That's all I'm asking," she pressed on when Elsa had opened her mouth to protest.

Elsa pursed her lips shut, pressing them into a thin line as she listened to Anna.

"When I went back home, I went through dad's stuff again and found his old journal. His notes mentioned this Rahn guy, so I followed up on it. Rahn was researching the grail before he caught the attention of one Heinrich Himmler of the SS," Anna explained. "Now, Himmler, in addition to being one of the worst Nazis of all time, was also very interested in occult research and most importantly, the grail. Now, Rahn had written two books about it, which caught Himmler's attention. In 1936, he recruited Rahn for his own little pet project. You kinda know how part of this story goes. The Nazis tore across Europe, stealing all sorts of artifacts and art pieces yada yada yada. But really, I think they were searching for the grail."

Elsa observed Anna as she spoke. She gestured with her hands animatedly and a glint had appeared in her eyes. After all these years, the obsession was still there and it hurt Elsa to see.

"Problem is, they never found it. And even though Rahn was officially a Nazi, he was Jewish and homosexual. He hated working for them. He only accepted Himmler's offer because he was desperate. Anyways, the Nazis were starting to get fed up with Rahn and they sent him away to serve as a guard at Dachau as a punishment. When he tried to resign in 1939, they put him on ice. Literally," Anna emphasized her point by drawing a finger across her throat. "They found his frozen corpse high up in the Tyrolean Alps in Austria. Officially it was a 'suicide'," she curled her fingers to show air quotes.

"Okay, but what's this got to do with the grail?" Elsa asked, humoring Anna.

"Well, that's the thing. Rahn was their top mind when it came to the grail. If anyone had ever come close to finding it, it was him. But after they iced him, they probably had no idea what to do. And with the war raging on, they had to devote their resources somewhere else. When the war started to go south for the Nazis, they began to purge all their research and records from they had from the concentration camps, the experiments they did, and all the stuff they had on the occult, including the grail. They couldn't let all their hard work be jeopardized and fall into the wrong hands so they destroyed it all, Rahn's work and everything," Anna said, meeting Elsa's look to emphasize her next point. "That's why dad never followed up on that lead, because he assumed that Rahn's research had been destroyed by the Nazis."

Elsa clenched her jaw in apprehension, but nodded all the same.

Anna leaned forward, opening the manila folder and spreading across the table a series of different photographs of various paintings and artifacts. "That was, at least, until I happened to come across a very interesting catalog of pieces that were recently uncovered. Which… is all going on sale at a black market auction held at the Rahn estate in Germany." Anna stated, then pointed to one piece in particular. "Take a look at this, what do you see?" she asked.

It was a small rectangular reliquary box that was constructed of wood with gold and silver inlays.

"Looks… like an old reliquary. What about it?" Elsa replied.

"Take a closer look. See that? The wax seal over the clasp? That's the Reichsadler, the emblem of the Nazi party! It's unbroken, Elsa. And I can tell you, that seal definitely didn't exist when that reliquary was made.

"So…"

"So, this reliquary box also just happened to be found in France by our guy, Rahn, before he disappeared. And the wax seal proves that Rahn must have hidden something inside, and that it hasn't been opened since nineteen thirty-fucking-nine!"

Anna shot up as she struggled to contain her excitement. It was clear that she had done her homework, but Elsa remained skeptical.

"Maybe, but hide what? There could be anything inside that old thing," Elsa said.

"The grail was his life! Rahn knew he had outlived his usefulness to the Nazis and he hated them! Why would he let his research fall into their hands if he could do anything about it?" Anna exclaimed. She sat back down and held Elsa by her shoulders. "Listen to me, and I know this will sound crazy but… but what if… Rahn hid some kind of clue to the grail? Inside that reliquary?"

Elsa glanced back at the photograph. The evidence that Anna had presented thus far was indeed compelling, but now she had broken off into pure conjecture and theory. Even so, Elsa could not deny that there was certainly enough accuracy in Anna's statements to suggest that she could be nearing the truth.

"I don't know, Anna. That's pure speculation. There's no way to tell what's in that thing, or even if Rahn himself was the one who hid something away," Elsa said.

"Aha! That's the other thing! This piece, and the others were found hidden away inside a wall of the Rahn estate! There's no way the Nazis could have found it and they were only just discovered by a maid who happened to knock over something heavy and punch a hole in the wall. Who hasn't been there?"

"Why sell them then?"

"Because these are pieces of history that the Nazis unjustly stole. I think anyone would want to get rid of that kind of association."

Elsa sighed and tented her hands together over her nose, scrunching her eyes shut as she thought to herself. Everything that Anna had presented so far had been solid, and the more she thought about it, the more the evidence strongly pointed to the fact that Anna was right.

"What are you suggesting, Anna? We go to this auction and buy it?"

"No, no. Of course not," Anna scoffed. "Nothing so banal."

"Then how do you expect to- oh," Elsa's tone flattened in realization. "You want to steal it, don't you?"

"We are going to steal it," Anna grinned, then suddenly changed her expression to match Elsa's grave one. "That is… if you… um, okay. Elsa, I don't want you to feel pressured, but it's just… I don't trust anyone else with this, okay? I want you… I need you on this one."

Elsa flinched internally when she heard the word need and thought for a moment that she might have misheard Anna. I need you, she replayed it in her mind. How can you need me? All I've ever done is hurt you.

"Why me?" Elsa finally asked, her voice laced with sorrow and regret at her past actions as well as genuine confusion that Anna would want her back in her life. "After everything I've done?"

Anna sensed Elsa's unease and took her hand gently into both of her own. She fixed Elsa with such a tender stare so full of affection that Elsa could hardly bear to meet her gaze for long and looked away, burned by her own shame and the purity of Anna's loyalty.

"Elsa, you know I love you," Anna's voice had a small hitch to it. "And I was never… I was never mad at you for leaving, I want you to know that."

"I abandoned you, and I hurt you. I failed you, how could you want anything to do with me?" Elsa said. "I left you."

She recalled the promise she had made all those years ago, the one she had failed to keep. It hurt then, and it still hurt now.

Anna smiled softly and squeezed Elsa's hand gently. "Because, you're my sister, Elsa. You're my only family left in the world. You hurt me, yeah, but I know I hurt you too, and I'm sorry. I was being selfish at the time and I never considered what I was putting you through."

Elsa listened carefully as Anna continued.

"I never called or came to find you because I guess I thought you hated me and never wanted to see me again."

"I don't hate you, Anna. I never have. I was just…"

Can you do it? Elsa asked herself. Can you tell her the truth you've always known? Can you tell her that you've always been the one who's hurt her? Can you tell her that she should run far away from you?

"I was scared," Elsa couldn't muster the courage.

She missed Anna terribly and now she was back, and welcoming her back with open arms. It wasn't fair to Anna, and Elsa should have known better, so the selfish part of her drowned out her rationality, desperate to feel Anna's love again.

"Me too," Anna replied.

Will you do it?

"Listen, I know it was wrong of me to just drop everything on you like this. I don't want to impose on you anymore than I already have. I won't be in town much longer, so I'll get out of your hair and… you can go back to your life. Thanks for the ice cream and, um, it was nice to see you again Elsa," Anna smiled bravely and released her hand as she rose.

Elsa mourned the loss of contact and grabbed Anna's hand, stopping her from leaving. "No. Wait, Anna. Please don't go."

Anna looked back, and her eyes were filled with the kind of hope that split Elsa's heart in half. One half knew she should let Anna leave, as she would be better off without her. Anna could be free, she could be unburdened by Elsa's grief and regret. The other half knew nothing but loneliness, isolation, and sadness. Elsa had felt an Anna-shaped hole in her life for so long, and now Anna was back despite everything she had done. It was another chance to redeem herself, another opportunity to set the path right, another shot to turn back the clocks and reverse the pain she had caused.

When the time comes, will you let her go?