A New Friend
It was a brisk autumn morning in the town of Arendelle. Still wrapped in her flannel pajamas, Elsa sat elegantly on the living room sofa, sipping at her herbal tea with a book resting dutifully in her hand. Having discovered a new-found interest in architecture- modern architecture, in particular- she had taken to reading quite the assortment of books on the subject. There was no end to her amazement of just how sleek and minimalist a building could appear, yet still be brimming with functionality.
Her nimble fingers flipped through the pages, with the tea cup gracing her lips for a small sip from time to time. While she without a doubt loved her sister dearly, she would be lying if she said that she didn't bask in moments such as these. Just her, her book, her tea, and the view of the autumn breeze as it rustled the palette of leaves that adorned the trees outside of their apartment window. These moments were to be savored, for Elsa knew all-too-well that they were fleeting in nature. Having such a bouncy, extroverted sibling certainly came with its own helping of challenges.
The jingling of keys at the door snapped her of her tranquil state, blue eyes rising to the source of the disturbance. The door swung open to reveal a breathless Anna, winded from her ascent up the staircase that led up to their apartment. In her hands rested an array of boxes and bags, which, in and of itself was not that unusual- it being fairly typical for her to go out shopping on a Saturday morning. What was unusual, however, was the lack of familiar branding. While Anna was wild at heart, she also tended to have her own set of habits, not unlike her sister, and typically maintained loyalty to a fairly small selection of shops. This, of course, caused Elsa to raise an eyebrow as to the source of her sister's purchases.
"Need some help?" Elsa inquired halfheartedly, not feeling particularly inclined to move just yet. She was a grown girl- she could handle it. But it was still polite to ask.
"No, I've got it!" Anna heaved with a sigh as she set the pile of mysterious merchandise by the arm chair. "Wouldn't want to disturb you and your 'me and tea' time." Anna cast her sister a playful sneer.
"A little late for that," snickered Elsa as she folded her book into her lap, returning the teasing glance. Shifting her eyes to Anna's haul, she inquired, "What all do you have there?" She cocked her head to the side, as if mimicking a curious puppy.
"Oh!" Anna exclaimed, "So! You know how they've been constructing that new building in the shopping center, right?"
"Yes…?"
"And, we had no idea what it was going to be, right? I was hoping it'd be a new game store, maybe a taco place, or, oooo, maybe even a trampoline park… Well, it turns out, it's not any of those things. It's a pet store!"
Elsa's eyebrows shifted from a position of curiosity to one of concern. A pet store? A look of puzzlement overtook her features. Why would she mention a pet store if it wasn't relevant to the purchases that sat before them? "Okay…" she hesitantly urged her sister to continue.
"So…. I thought I'd go in to check it out, just for fun, you know?"
"Uh huh..." distrust thickened in her tone. "But Anna, we don't have any pets. Why the bags?"
"I'm getting to that!" Anna rolled her eyes and smirked in response to her sister's very rude interruption. Patience, Elsa. Yeesh. "So, I went inside and.. wow, it was huge! They had sooo many cool things! And then I went to check out the animals, and goodness, Elsa, they were so cute..."
"The bags?" Elsa pried once again, warily eyeing one box in particular, the array of tiny holes coming into focus. She didn't…
"I'm getting there! So, I was looking at the animals and one of them really caught my eye. I swear, Elsa! I tried to be good, and I almost left…" Anna paused as her hands began to drift to the same box Elsa had been so cautiously watching, "but I just couldn't stop thinking about them, so…." Carefully, she lifted the aerated box from the carpet and set it atop the coffee table. She then opened the flaps and lifted the plastic container that rested within. "So.. um, yeah, meet our new pet!"
Elsa's eye twitched slightly as she righted herself from the sofa, her thumb and fingers meeting her temples in a mixture of confusion and frustration. "Wait.. you got a pet?!" she spat, trying to wrap her head around this sudden development. Peering more intently into the plastic enclosure, she attempted to decipher what exactly it was that her dear sister had acquired, a distinct animal not yet coming into view. "What did you even get?"
Under different circumstances, Elsa would have most likely noticed the nervous anticipation clearly written over Anna's expression- a surefire clue as to the most unpleasant surprise that awaited her in that tiny container. The illusion of the creature's camouflage finally wearing off, Elsa could now discern the animal that lay waiting inside. Her eyes widened, glazed over in horror at the 8 gleaming eyes that glared back at her, piercing her straight through to her soul.
An audible holler erupted from Elsa's chest as she promptly backed away from the offending critter. "Anna, please tell me you did NOT bring a spider into this house." It's a prank, right? Has to be a prank… She's not really this out of her mind... is she?! "This is a joke, right? A toy? A mean trick?" she stumbled over her words as she desperately tried to convince herself that her sister would more readily be cruel than insane. Before Anna could adequately answer, the jerk of one of its legs- of which the beast had far too many- confirmed that this was, in fact, a living, breathing entity that sat menacingly before her. It was true. Her poor sister had finally lost it.
"Elsa, hear me out..."
"Anna, I will not hear you out! You can't just bring spiders into the house!" There were a lot of things she tolerated from her well-meaning sister, but this, it seemed, was not turning out to be one of them.
"Well, why not?" Anna furrowed her brows.
"Because it's a spider!" Did they really have to have this conversation?
"But Elsaaa, she's so cute," Anna cooed as she gazed at her eight-legged friend, her eyes soft with affection. "And she's not just any spider, Elsa, she's a tarantula!"
Yeah, like that made it any better. Elsa shivered at the chill racing down her spine. You love Anna... You love Anna… This was proving to be one of those occasions where she needed to remind herself of that fact. "Okay, but, why not a rabbit? Or a hamster? Why… that god forsaken abomination."
Anna gasped. "You take that back! She is precious. Besides, hamsters only live for like, two years! If she does well, she could live up to forty!"
"For...for...forty years?!" It didn't matter how many times she tossed the words around in her mind, they didn't make any sense. These weren't one of those creatures that lives for two weeks and dies? Of course her darling sister would pick the one that lives half a human lifetime. "Anna, what are you even going to do with it? It's not like you can pet it or walk it..."
"I'm going to love her," Anna proclaimed as she hugged the container close to her chest, casting yet another sneer at her persistently stubborn sister.
"You can't love a spider."
"Well maybe you can't, but I can. And she is staying." Anna leaned down to gather the bags of supplies and, with a triumphant nod and an audible hmph, promptly toted them and her new-found friend to her room.
The clock struck 3:00 as Elsa was just finishing up the last of her lunch, a small bite of sandwich still residing on her plate. Just as she moved to pick up the last bit, she heard the click of Anna's bedroom door. "So, you live?" Elsa quipped without turning her head, a small smile pulling at her lips.
"Very funny, Els. I was just setting up Circe."
"You..." Elsa paused in an attempt to process the information she had just received, "you named it?"
"No, I named her." Anna barked back in response.
Elsa was busy readying a sly response as she stood and turned to face her sister when she was promptly greeted by the foul creature clinging onto her sister's shoulder. "Oh my god, Anna!" Elsa shouted as she recoiled from the startling sight, her hand rising dramatically to her chest. "You're going to give me a heart attack with that thing!"
"Sorry..." Anna winced with a sympathetic smile. Her tone was surprisingly apologetic. "Look, why don't you just give her a chance? She's not so bad, I promise!"
"Anna, I'm not going to make friends with your spider..."
"Come on… for me?" Anna pleaded, her blue-green eyes growing wide. She knew what she was doing.
Not fair! Those eyes. Damn it, those eyes. Denial slowly slipping into acceptance, Elsa finally began to humor her sister and entertain the idea that this creature was not going anywhere anytime soon. "Okay, fine. Convince me."
Thrown off kilter by Elsa's sudden submission, Anna hastily pieced together a response. "Oh, um… well, you love architecture, don't you? Well, they happen to be natural architects! They build the MOST amazing webs."
Fair attempt. However, it would take more than Elsa's love of architecture to win her over. "Mmhmm, go on."
"Uh… oh! Circe is a female, right? So she lives over four times longer than a male! A male has a bad deal, let me tell you… He grows up, stops eating, and then starts looking for a mate. When he finds her, he taps on her burrow asking for permission to mate with her. If she doesn't accept, she eats him. If she says yes, then she will let him mate, but then might still eat him anyway. And, even if he does get away, he'll still die because he'll starve himself to death. Interesting, huh? That's a strong womanly figure if you ask me."
Elsa's expression was one of mild terror and amusement. She wasn't exactly sure of what was going to come out of her sister's mouth, but it certainly wasn't that. "Anna, that's horrifying," she stated with a chuckle. She had to admit, she was impressed by the amount research her sister had managed to complete in such a short duration of time.
"Yes, but awesome," Anna voiced matter-of-factly. "And" she added, "they have the cutest little paws!"
"Paws?" Elsa questioned as she raised an eyebrow. It was a spider, not a dog.
"Oh gosh, Elsa, you have to see them!"
A lump traveled down Elsa's throat as she prepared herself- both mentally and physically- to inch her way towards the creature. Despite her lingering fear, she couldn't help but grin at Anna's ever-widening smile as the gap closed between them. The things I don't do for you, Sis, she secretly mused to herself. She lowered her head to get a closer look, and sure enough, each of Circe's eight legs was accompanied by two of the tiniest, pinkest of toes, little tufts of hair lending them a furry appearance. She allowed her eyes to drift back to Anna's, not believing what she was about to say. "Okay, okay. I'll admit, they are pretty cute."
"Yes!" Anna roared victoriously. She knew Elsa couldn't resist her charms for long. "Sooo, you wanna hold her?" she teased, more for Elsa's reaction than anything.
"One step at a time," Elsa uttered sternly but playfully. "You really are insane, you know that?"
"I know," she openly acknowledged, wearing that fact like a badge of honor, "but that's why you love me."
"I suppose," Elsa chuckled as she nodded her head, endearment glistening in her eyes. As crazy as Anna drove her sometimes, she never failed to brighten up her once-lonely world. If a tarantula- as much as she didn't understand it- was going to make her sister happy, then that was yet one more thing that she was willing to overcome.
A/N: Long time no see! I finally came up with a new idea for Life Lessons, so I hope you guys enjoyed! I apologize for the opening of this chapter having similarities to chapter 2... it's been a few years and I didn't realize until after it was written, so it is what it is, haha. This series holds a special place in my heart, and I will continue to add more as ideas come to mind. Yes, this was inspired by my recent acquisition of a pet tarantula. No, you should not put them on your shoulder. Yes, you should totally look up tarantula paws. :3 Any feedback and suggestions are greatly appreciated. 3