Oh look, another chapter of this instead of MAIB. Oops. I promise I'll get another chapter out for my other fics soon. I'm terrible, I know.
A little more backstory to the Alstads and their family, which I promise will be expanded on further as the story progresses.
Until then, enjoy,
- Dex
Hold My Hand
Chapter II
Anna was the first to awake, blinking blearily as her eyes adjusted to the dim light in her room. Her blinds were shut, only allowing the faintest late afternoon light to seep in. Squinting to focus, she untangled herself from the snare of her sister's limbs and propped herself up on her elbows.
"What time is it?" She murmured sleepily to herself, leaning over Elsa to see her left bedside table, where her digital clock was. The gleaming red lights read 5:52 PM and the redhead sighed. She'd slept for two hours, and now she was sure she'd be ruined for a goodnight sleep.
Wrinkling the bridge of her nose, and pursing her lips, the redhead sighed. "This is your fault," She muttered under her breath, raising her hand to poke Elsa's cheek, garnering an irritated moan from her sister. The corners of Anna's lips twitched, before a wide grin tugged at them. "All your fault," The redhead singsonged, gently tapping the swell of Elsa's cheek with her index finger.
"Ngh," Elsa groaned, her brow knitting, "stop that…'m sleepy." Her voice was thick with grogginess. Anna couldn't help but giggle and continue to prod her sister's cheek like a kitten pawing at a loose thread.
"What was that sis? Didn't quite catch that," Anna teased, propped up on her elbow with her chin resting in the flat of her palm.
"Said that's 'nuff," Elsa growled, turning her head to bury her face in the pillow, hoping to avoid any further annoyances from her baby sister.
"Fine," She heard Anna hum. Odd, she didn't sound disappointed. Normally Anna hates being denied, especially if she had been enjoying herself. Elsa waited for retaliation, the room silent around her darkened view, with not even the slightest movement coming from Anna's side of the bed.
"Anna…?" Elsa murmured into the plush down of the pillow, face still pressed firmly against it. No answer came. She did, however, feel weight shifting beside her. Anna was still there, she could hear her sister's gentle rhythmic breathing, and she tensed in readiness.
Suddenly there was weight atop her, pressing her down more firmly into the mattress, as hands found her sides and began stroking slowly. Immediately, the blonde's pale freckled cheeks igniting into a red hot blush, spreading from ear to ear and engulfing the better portion of her face. She felt Anna's knees at either side of her hips and she buried deeper into the pillow, which was mercifully cold against her warm skin.
"Elsa," Anna crooned softly, and Elsa could practically hear her sister's massive grin, "are you still sleepy?"
No.
"Yes," The blonde spoke softly, "I want to sleep…" Anna's slender fingers twitched against her sides as they grazed the base of the blonde's shirt, which had hiked up slightly in her sleep, leaving the slightest sliver of alabaster skin exposed above her hips.
"Are you sure?" The pads of Anna's fingers grazed lower, dancing over the exposed section of skin, teasing it with feather light touches.
A very unflattering whine escaped the blonde as she replied weakly. "Yes…" Anna hummed, while her fingers pressed more firmly against Elsa's skin and began gliding upwards. Elsa gnawed at her lower lip, biting back a pleasured moan that threatened to escape, which instead caught somewhere in her throat and was muffled silent.
"You're cold, Elsa," Anna teased, as her fingers slid under the light material of her sister's shirt, running up to the base of her ribcage. "Do you need a blanket? Or should I warm you up?"
Oh God. Elsa couldn't stifle the whine that escaped her at hearing her sister's sultry and suggestive comment. She felt the unforgiving slowness of her sister's fingers riding up her sides, now at her ribs, where they stilled and brushed at her skin gingerly.
"Anna," She mewled softly, her eyes screwing tightly shut, if to hide her embarrassment more so than she already had.
"Yes?" Anna smirked, her fingers pressing more firmly to Elsa's sides, as they grazed the smooth pale skin there. No answer followed her name, as if to wordlessly convey her sister's mixture of embarrassment and pleasure.
The room was thick with tension between the sisters, which, all at once, Anna completely removed when her gentle touches morphed into aggressive tickling.
Blue eyes shot open and a bubbling laughter rolled from Elsa's lips as she twisted, trying to free herself from the snare of her younger sister's legs, while Anna's fingers danced relentlessly over her bare sides.
"A-Anna!" Elsa squealed, writhing beneath her sister.
"You're trapped now, Elsa," Anna chirruped, teasing her sister's skin while watching the pitiful excuse for an attempt at freedom going on beneath her hands. "We all know I'm stronger than you, so you're not going anywhere!"
Elsa hiccupped between bouts of laughter, the corners of her eyes crinkling as she smiled despite her obvious pleas for release. "A-Ah–Anna! Please I…I can't, ahahaha," Tears pricked at the Elsa's eyes, threatening to spill down her deeply flushed cheeks. She twisted to the side, jostling Anna, but unsuccessfully dislodging her sister from above her.
"Just surrender Elsa," Anna cooed, her fingers moving with lightning quickness against Elsa's abused sides, "then I'll stop. I promise."
"N-Never," The blonde cried out, tossing her weight with all the force she could muster, which sent the duo careening over the side of the bed. Not the desired effect, and they did just barely miss the bedside table on their way down, but when they landed on the floor in a jumbled mass and a heavy thud, Anna's fingers left Elsa's sore ribs.
Both girls lay on the floor, Elsa still beneath Anna, with reddened cheeks and breathy sounds. They gasped to catch their breaths, before they locked eyes and burst into another roar of laughter.
Then, suddenly, Anna's bedroom door burst open, and their father looked into the room worriedly. "Girls," He called out, "we heard something hit the ground from downstairs, is everything alright?"
Anna shot her arm up from the opposite side of the bed, waving it. "We're fine Papa, just fell," She snickered quietly. "It was entirely Elsa's fault so–"
"It was not," The blonde insisted, shoving at her sister.
"Totally was," Anna quipped, grinning widely, "you started it by ignoring me."
"You interrupted my sleeping," Elsa retorted, "I am exhausted."
"Yeah, well I–"
"Girls," The father interrupted, smiling gently, which etched itself onto his tired expression. "Dinner will be ready in half an hour." Anna raised her head above mattress level and blinked wide teal eyes at her father.
"Sure Papa," She hummed, "we'll be down soon to wash up." The brunette man gave a curt nod and then looked sternly to his youngest. Anna quirked a brow at the silent stare, while Elsa, still stuck beneath her sibling, watched in silence as the redhead's happy expression contorted into a confused one. "Is something wrong?" She asked.
"I would like to speak with you after dinner," He stated flatly, it was not a request, it was a command. Anna nodded her head in understanding and he turned to move, pausing to flash a small smile before closing the door behind him. The girls listened the padding of their father's footsteps as her reached the stairs and descended them.
"What was all that about?" Elsa asked curiously, awkwardly shifting until she was seat upright, though her legs were still under Anna.
"I have no idea, but something serious," Anna mused, turning to face her sister, "you think I'm in trouble?" Elsa smiled and reached out, threading her fingers in coppery hair.
"Hmm, probably," She hummed as she gently massaged Anna's scalp with her nails, to which the ginger happily pressed into, "you probably broke something, or lost something, or initiated a war between us and a foreign nation." Although she was affectionately rubbing against Elsa's touch, the redhead had the presence of mind to jut out her lower lip in a deep pout.
"You're a stinker," Anna muttered, never breaking eye contact while Elsa's gently scratched her scalp in the most pleasurable of ways. "Have a little more faith in me than that." The blonde giggled and laced the fingers of her free hand with one of Anna's, giving her sister's hand a gentle squeeze.
"I have more faith in you than you know," She assured, leaning in to press her lips against Anna's in a sweet chaste kiss.
"Dinner looks great, Mama," Anna clasped her hands together excitedly, eyes staring down at the spread while her mouth watered.
"Thank you," Idun smiled as she served out a spoonful of steamed and buttered carrots to each place setting.
Anna moved to stab her fork into the carrots, eager to get started, and her father cleared his throat. "Anna, wait until your mother is done serving you," He admonished, which was immediately followed by a chuckle, lessening the severity of the scolding considerably.
Nevertheless, Anna withdrew her readied fork and grinned. "Sorry Papa." She apologized.
"Would you like a leg, wing or breast meat?" Idun asked, turning to cut into the roast chicken sitting in the deep porcelain dish at the center of the table.
"May I have a leg?" Elsa asked, lifting her plate and extending it out to receive her portion of meat.
"Of course," Idun smiled, cutting through the steaming hot white meat and bone, setting the leg on Elsa's plate, which was immediately withdrawn and replaced by Anna's.
"Breast meat, please," The redhead chimed, eyes glued on the delicious looking chicken.
"I'm going to give you a small cut to start, and if you want more, you can ask." Anna grumbled at that.
"But Mama–"
"Your eyes are bigger than your stomach," Agdar clarified, to which Elsa giggled, raising her hand to cover her lips. "You almost always leave food on your plate."
"That's not true Papa," Anna insisted, and Agdar raised a single brow into his hairline. Anna held a steely serious stare for a brief moment, but relented under her father's gaze, and quickly smiled widely.
"It's true," Elsa commented while receiving a spoonful of mashed potatoes.
"Elsa," Anna gasped, feigning hurt. Both Idun and Agdar chuckled, always amused by their daughter's bickering.
"Just eat what's on your plate, and if you're still hungry, you can have seconds." Agdar stated firmly, raising his wine glass to his lips and taking a sip.
"Here's my plate," Anna carried her dinner dishes into the kitchen, setting them by the sink, where her mother stood rinsing the plates before handing them off to Elsa. "Dinner was great Mama, as always."
Idun smiled warmly over her shoulder at her youngest. "No amount of sweet-talking is getting you out of your talk with your father," The lavender eyed woman hummed, handing a rinsed plate to Elsa, who placed it into the open dishwasher rack. "but I appreciate the compliment either way." Anna huffed.
"What did I do?" She asked again, for the ninth time since she started clearing the table and their father retired to his study.
"Nothing," Idun assured, rinsing their cutlery, "you're not in trouble Anna." The brunette woman turned slightly and gave her daughter a once over. "Though, if you're so sure you did something wrong, maybe I should be worried. Am I going to get a call from a teacher or your principal?"
"No," Anna leaned against the counter and crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm a model student." Elsa scoffed, and Anna turned a mock-glare to her sister.
"Don't worry then, Anna," Idun dismissed, handing off the last of their dinner forks and knives to Elsa, "just go talk to your father." Throwing her arms up, Anna sighed heavily and stepped out of the kitchen.
"Alright, fine," The redhead groaned, "but if you don't hear from me in an hour send help."
"I'll come save you," Elsa assured with a smile, "but I doubt Papa could take you down, even if he wanted to." The ginger smiled widely, her chest swelling proudly at her sister's statement.
"Go on then," Idun laughed, smiling as Anna disappeared from sight. She turned to see Elsa nervously wringing her hands in front of her stomach, blue eyes wide with worry. "Elsa," The brunette smiled warmly while reaching out for one of her daughter's hands, "it's alright. Don't worry yourself over a father-daughter talk–" Her fingers touched the knuckles of Elsa's right hand, causing the blonde to jerk away and clutch her hands tightly to her chest. Idun stepped back slightly and frowned deeply. "Elsa…"
The blonde breathed softly. "I'm sorry Mama," She lowered her hands slowly and Idun forced a smile.
"It's alright," She lied, though her feelings didn't betray her voice "how about we watch something together?"
"Alright," Elsa answered, her hands tightly locked together, as she watched her mother walk past her towards the living room.
Anna rapped her knuckles against her father's closed study door, drawing her hand back and stiffening her arms tightly at her sides as she waited. When the door opened, and her father stood before her, she smiled and stepped around him.
"Take a seat please, Anna," Agdar spoke, his voice low and stern–very fatherly. Anna did as she was told, dropping into one of the armchairs in the office space, setting her hands on her lap.
'I am in so much trouble,' The redhead thought to herself. "What did I do?" Agdar raised his head and moved around, taking a seat across from Anna.
"Why do you think you're in trouble?" He asked, his tone noticeably softer, "am I going to get a call from a teacher or your principal?" Anna blinked.
"Wait, what? No," She shook her head rapidly, "why do you and Mama assume that?"
"Why do you think you're in trouble, then?" Agdar quipped with a grin. Anna sighed.
"Because I never get called into your study, not unless it's serious–"
"Well it is serious," Agdar leaned back in his seat, "but it has nothing to do with you being in trouble." He assured.
"Oh good," Anna breathed, relieved. "What is it then Papa?" Agdar hummed, musing for a moment, and trying to determine how to best approach the subject.
"You're graduating in a few weeks," He began, and Anna leaned forward in her seat, "and next September you're being enrolled in the same school as your sister." So far, so good. "Your mother is really worried that your sister's condition might affect her…older one."
Oh. OHHH.
"You're worried Elsa's going to show her powers if she gets stressed?" Anna clarified. Agdar hummed his confirmation.
"We can't entrust anyone outside of our family to look after Elsa," He explained flatly, "not that your mother would ever allow me to hire someone to watch after your sister…not after what happened with Rapunzel."
Rapunzel, the girls' cousin, the daughter of their father's sister. She was much like Elsa, born with a unique gifts (the term their family chose to use when referring to powers), but unlike what the Alstads decided to do, Rapunzel's parents hired a guardian to look after Rapunzel when they could not keep an eye on their daughter.
Ms. Gothel seemed like such a good caregiver, and even Anna had memories of the dark haired woman being sweet and upstanding, even if she wore far too much perfume and had too much of a fondness for wearing plum coloured clothing. Ms. Gothel spent much of her time caring for Rapunzel, even moving into the spacious mansion owned by their aunt and uncle. After a while, though, it turned out that Ms. Gothel had become obsessed with Rapunzel's regenerative abilities, and was abusing the healing powers. She even managed to cut a portion of their cousin's hair – the source of her 'unique gifts' – and was ultimately discharged and paid a huge lump sum for her confidentiality on the matter.
It hadn't been the first time their family had paid off someone for their silence, Anna knew this, and had developed a rather protective streak when it came to her older sister and cousin because of it.
"I understand, Papa," Anna spoke softly, twiddling her thumbs, "you want me to look after Elsa while I'm at school." Agdar nodded solemnly.
"You need to protect your sister, now more than ever." Anna swallowed hard, and gave a nod.
"I understand." Agdar smiled.
"I know this is a lot to ask of you, Anna," He looked down at his lap, "but we really have no other choice. We can't hire anyone and not only that…, but…." Anna raised her head. "Elsa doesn't trust anyone else. Her powers are…far more destructive than your cousin's."
Anna glanced over her father's shoulder to the bookshelf directly behind his desk – it contained family history, tomes about their ancestors, and was the only key they had to understanding the unique gifts that afflicted some family members. Agdar had inherited from his grandfather, who passed shortly after Elsa was born.
"I'll look after Elsa, Papa, I promise." Agdar smiled. It never ceased to amaze him how strong Anna was.
"We'll talk more about this later, but I have been doing some research, and there are a few things I want you and your sister to see."
Anna bobbed her head understandingly. "Okay, Papa."
"Elsa, are you awake?" Anna knocked gently at her sister's door.
Knock – knock – knock, knock, knock. No answer.
"I'm coming in," The redhead whispered, turning the knob and opening her sister's door with a muffled creak. She stepped inside, shutting it behind her, as she allowed her eyes to adjust to the darkness. The only source of light in her sister's room as her digital clock, which like her own, sat to the left side of the bed on a lamp table.
It read 11:52 PM, it was late, and Elsa had morning classes.
Anna hesitated for a moment. She wanted to approach her sister, but she knew she should let Elsa sleep. She waged an internal war, fought between her desire to cuddle and her desire to let her sister rest.
"Hmm, Anna?" Elsa's voice garnered the redhead's attention, as she watched the mound of blankets shift and her sister turn to face her. "Are you okay? It's late." Anna smiled sheepishly.
"I know, I'm sorry for waking you," She murmured.
"Oh, now you're sorry," Elsa teased, extending her arm and patting the bed next to her. "You can come over, if you want." Without a moment's hesitation, Anna crept across the room and threw herself onto her sister's bed, immediately latching onto Elsa and burying her nose in the crook of her sister's slender throat. "Oof–alright, someone's cuddly tonight." Elsa laughed, wrapping an arm around Anna. "Are you okay?"
Anna nuzzled deeper into the embrace. "Yeah," She hummed softly, closing her eyes. "You need to get up early, right?"
"Around seven thirty," Elsa hummed, raking her fingers gently through Anna's hair, "but you can spend the night."
"Thanks Elsa," Anna kissed her sister's neck and settled in comfortably.
"Of course, you know I'll always want you here with me." The redhead smiled and slipped her own arm around Elsa, sighing contently as she let herself slip into unconsciousness.