Chapter 19
A/N: Alright, I admit I went a tad—okay, a lot overboard with the Pokémon references last chapter, but I learned my lesson, folks. No more Pokémon references.
As she walked inside the humid room, the hazy, sleepy atmosphere made Elsa's head feel fuzzy. The humid air circulating the room opened her pores and induced her body into a drowsy stupor - Elsa felt openly vulnerable, as if stepping into a confession booth. The silence was a stark difference from the chaos beforehand, and was a welcomed change of setting.
As time spent in the sauna passed, Elsa began to wonder if she was dreaming - possibly still knocked out from the explosion and unconscious on her bed. Everything that has happened must be from a strange dream she was having. Yes, that must be it, Elsa tried to convinced herself. Anna isn't still unconscious. She's fine. Just fine.
In fact, Elsa could picture Anna sitting beside her bed, waiting for her to wake up while Elsa obliviously continued to sojourn through her messed-up mind - imagining herself to be an indestructible heroine in a twisted version of reality. Though as Elsa stood in the middle of the sauna, the all-too-real aching in her joints and in her heart persuaded her enough to accept the strange events were not figments of her imagination, and that fact scared her more than any horror story. I suppose, truth really is stranger than fiction.
Without realizing she had brought in her ice wand/staff along in with her, the weapon quickly melted away inside the steamy room within minutes. The once giggle-inducing wand/staff, was reduced to nothing more than a plain puddle of water.
Elsa watched expressionlessly as the object dissipated on the bench she tossed it upon. It was funny how ice could easily disappear with just a little heat – how forms of destruction followed an endless cycle. I wonder, Elsa began to think. Do my powers cause more harm than good?
"Ice turns to water and water evaporates. Leaving nothing behind. Not even a trace," Elsa spoke to herself. It was simple science, but how could something so simple confound her so much – make her brain hurt with looping reminders of how helpless she truly felt no matter how hard she tried to convince herself otherwise.
Elsa could only dance around the subject of how freakish her powers made her felt for so long – even turn dire situations into silly ones in her mind as a way of coping, but eventually, reality would creep in and remind her of how bad things truly were. She had powers, sure, but they offered little help in saving Anna. What could ice and snow do except destroy? Elsa felt her throat constrict from tears threatening to flood forth, but she tried her hardest to hold them back, making her throat burn from the restriction. I will not cry, she told herself. Think of something humorous. Doesn't that always helps you in times of sadness? Elsa tried, but this time around, no jokes came forth to lighten the mood.
Forgetting her outfit was made of ice, Elsa heard a sound like falling raindrops and looked down to see her armor dripping water onto the wooden floor – the heat and steam making quick work of her entire ensemble. Drip, drip, drip. The monotonous sound was deafening to Elsa though it was barely audible.
Elsa waited patiently until the armor completely melted away off her body. The end result left water droplets in her armor's place, and decorated her ivory skin with a subtle gleaming created by the overhead light. One could even say she would never be more breathtaking than in that moment – a magical rawness in the natural state she was in, but her unrelenting self-loathing marred the glory of what might be defined as true beauty.
Elsa reached the back of her head to release her hair into a tousled mane, a few droplets of both water and sweat falling to the floor as she did so. She then gingerly moved Anna to sit her down on the bench. The younger girl's head lolled slightly to the side and Elsa took Anna's head to let it rest against her shoulder. Anna's soft breathing tickled Elsa's wet skin, and Elsa closed her eyes to revel in the comforting sensation. If a third party were to be a witness, they would have thought the two girls were simply enjoying a relaxing day at the spa, but Elsa couldn't have been more far from relaxed.
Elsa's eyes slowly wandered over Anna's face and body, hoping to see any signs of reaction from the girl, but there were none. "Anna…" Elsa whispered longingly, as she nimbly moved her fingers to untie Anna's trademark pigtails. Elsa rarely saw Anna in any other hairstyle, but liked how innocent her pigtails always made her look. She also had to confess that she favored Anna with her hair down, messy and unruly as if she just woke up from bed. Although, Elsa would always find Anna attractive no matter what style of hair or clothing she wore.
"Because I love you just for being you," Elsa lovingly said, trying not to cry as she finally undid Anna's pigtails. Elsa moved her eyes along Anna's long, flowing, red hair until they ended at her breasts. Elsa's cheeks turned redder than they already were, and she realized she still had yet to undress Anna – the poor girl's clothes were already soaked in sweat.
"Okay," Elsa said, letting out a breath. "Let's get you more comfortable, Anna," Elsa continued to speak. She slipped her fingers underneath Anna's top to push the garment up. Her fingers touched Anna's soft skin and Elsa clenched her jaw from the rush of feelings washing over her. "Come on, it's not like you've never touched her before," Elsa whispered, and her mind flooded with memories of the fleetingly intimate moments they shared. Her face became unbearably hot and her throat instantly dried. Elsa let out a quick cough and continued to swiftly pull Anna's top off her torso as if ripping a band aid.
Anna was left wearing a dark-green bra with her matching skirt. Elsa gulped nervously and tried not to think of how strange it felt to be undressing an unconscious Anna. If she was awake would it be any easier? "Strangely, yes," Elsa answered her own question, and tried to push away the thought of herself as some drooling pervert.
Elsa then removed Anna's skirt with equal difficulty. Next was Anna's bra, and Elsa looked shyly away as she worked on unclasping the garment. Her sweaty hands and nervousness caused her to have a hard time unlatching the damn thing. "Come," Elsa panted. "On," she finished, as she continued to struggle with the latch. The heat and humidity was not helping the situation as Elsa's body became heavily coated in sweat. Being so close to Anna's body made Elsa sweat even harder. A lone bead of sweat traveled down Elsa's nose bridge and dangled from the tip of Elsa's nose. It eventually fell and landed onto Anna's right eyelid. Anna's eyelids fluttered. Elsa immediately froze.
"Mmnh," Anna moaned, and flinched slightly, but her eyes remained shut.
Elsa still had her hands behind Anna's back as her face hovered a few centimeters from Anna's – watching intently for Anna to move or make a sound again.
"Anna," Elsa said, softy, her eyes glued onto Anna's features for another sign of movement.
Anna's body became animated again upon hearing her name, and Elsa's heart was beating so fast, she thought she might collapse.
Anna's eyelids slowly opened, and Elsa's heart immediately filled up with joy, elation, jubilation, and every other happy synonym.
"Elsa?" Anna said, groggily, as she gazed up at Elsa's face with glassy, half-opened eyes.
Elsa was still in a state of shock from both happiness and disbelief to say anything.
Anna's eyes slowly surveyed the room and then she looked down at her unclad body. Anna's cheeks blushed deeply and they turned a shade darker when she realized Elsa's fingers were around the back of her bra. "E-Elsa, what's happening?"
Elsa's brain finally switched back on and what came out was an embarrassing spew of nonsense. "Th-this—I'm not— Anna, I'm so glad—No, not just glad. I'm—" Elsa rambled, as she tried to pull her hands away from behind Anna's back. But just like her usual self, Elsa clumsily slipped on the slick floor and nearly collided on top of Anna, but she stopped herself from falling in time by placing her hands on the sides of Anna's head. Still, Elsa's nose nearly touched Anna's as they stared silently at one another, both dripping in sweat. Anna, was clearly confused and Elsa was simply awkward.
"You… You've been asleep a while now," Elsa started, finally forming a complete sentence. "I thought I'd never hear your voice again," Elsa's voice cracked as she confessed her worst fear. Elsa dropped her head until her forehead touched Anna's. "I've missed you so much," Elsa whispered, and inhaled deeply.
Anna took Elsa's face into her hands and said, "I think I heard you talking to me, Elsa. I listened as you spoke, and all I remember seeing was your face." Anna paused, and reflected for a moment. "I think it's because of you I was able to find my way back."
Elsa's eyes welled up with tears, but she tried to crack a smile to relieve the heavy atmosphere. "I hope you didn't hear what happened last night. I think you might have hated who I became for a moment then."
"Why?" Anna said, cocking her head as her lips slowly curled up into a smile.
"Let's just say, I was very unlike myself," Elsa vaguely replied. "And so was everyone else," Elsa added, remembering the bizarre battle.
Anna pouted. "Come on, Elsa. Don't tease. What happened last night?"
"Um," Elsa hesitantly started, unsure whether to tell Anna. "I sort of switched into another persona where I was this tough Valkyrie ice-warrior when Lady Alexandra and friends attacked us. It was odd to say the least," Elsa quickly said, blushing from the embarrassing memory.
Anna's eyes lit up with surprise. "How could I ever hate you for that, Elsa?" She asked, incredulously. "It's a shame I missed it," Anna sighed, despairingly. "I miss all the good stuff."
"Trust me, be glad that you did," Elsa said, and nuzzled her nose lovingly against Anna's as she reveled in the joy of hearing Anna's voice again.
"I suppose, I do prefer you in your usual clumsy and awkward ways," Anna giggled, but stopped when she felt a tear wet her cheek.
Elsa's body shook as she restrained from sobbing, but despite her efforts, a few more tears trickled from her shut eyes.
"Elsa?" Anna whispered, and touched the older girl's cheek. "Hey, what's wrong?"
"Nothing," Elsa shakily replied, and hurriedly wiped away her tears. "I'm just so happy I can speak to you again."
Anna smiled warmly and wrapped her arms around Elsa's trembling form to hug her close. Their bodies were slick from sweat, but Elsa didn't find it uncomfortable for their bodies to touch. She was glad to feel Anna's arms hold her again and Elsa shivered from the contact as her breathing became erratic. She was tired, but her mind had never felt more awake.
"Thank you, Elsa," Anna whispered into the nape of Elsa's neck, tickling the blonde's flesh with her warm breath. "Thank you for saving me."
Elsa's eyes widened with surprise upon hearing the gratefulness in Anna's voice. She hugged Anna tightly and pressed her face down onto the girl's freckle-spotted shoulder. After all the pain and worry, this one moment made all the suffering worthwhile.
"You don't have to thank me, Anna," Elsa simply said.
"Oh, but I do," Anna giggled. "The Princess must always thank her rescuer at the end of the story."
Elsa chuckled softly, and looked into Anna's eyes – her face reflected in the shining pools of blue-green eyes. "Is this really the end of the story?" Elsa played along.
"No, it's just the beginning," Anna answered, and smiled as she brought her lips to Elsa's to kiss her deeply.
I wonder if our story will become a fairytale classic. Elsa wondered. No probably not. At least not for kids… or sane people.
Their lips parted, and Anna smiled at the blonde's ponderous expression.
"What are you thinking about, Elsa?"
Elsa opened her mouth to reply, but loud knocking interrupted her. Kristoff's voice could be heard from the other side.
"I hate to be a happenstance interrupter, but there's an emergency out here!" Kristoff bellowed, and then screamed from a source unseen.
"I guess the saga continues," Elsa sighed.