She wasn't going to call Anna tonight.
No. Elsa thought, as she walked across the damp grass on her way towards their pond. Anna can't see me like this.
She really hadn't meant to make him angry but she'd lost control.
He had announced that he was leaving again tonight, which wasn't unusual, but he was in a strangely talkative mood and he had added in a comment about eating well at the princess's birthday festival.
Elsa had not been able to control the sudden wave of resentment she had felt at his words as her empty stomach turned. Knowing that if she finished off her current ration of food now there would be nothing to eat tomorrow.
But she would have been fine.
If she had been able to stop the ice from frosting over her quill, and if he hadn't noticed.
Now her face was stinging and she knew that a familiar pattern of black and blue had already started to color and spread across her cheek.
She had deserved it. She knew that. Using her powers outside of her training was unacceptable.
Especially losing control of them.
Elsa sometimes feared what would happen if it was ever decided that her powers were actually uncontrollable. That despite her every effort they suddenly thought she was to dangerous to be worth the risk.
But he was gone now and wouldn't be back for days. So she allowed herself to escape, the way she always did, and went to her pond.
It was only there that Elsa allowed herself to be free with her powers. And today she just really needed to escape.
She had never been really bothered by it before. The way he treated. It made sense to Elsa. She knew she was dangerous, and a single slip up from an eight year old girl could kill anyone unlucky enough to be in the vicinity. She was cursed and dangerous. She was the reason they stayed far away from the town and any other living human being.
She knew this. But lately . . .
Elsa sighed, unable to help herself as the conflict that had been building in her over the past few months swirled inside her chest as she walked towards her pond.
Not her pond.
Their pond.
That was it. Her problem was a red haired five year old. A five year old who had managed to turn her world upside down because for the first time in forever she made Elsa feel like she wasn't a monster. And Elsa had no idea what to do about it.
Elsa had accepted what she was and what was expected of her. But it was like the younger girl had infected her. Her actions, little things like hugs and smiles, digging in under Elsa's skin and things she'd said running through her veins and bursting out of her at the worst times.
Memories of their first encounter still made heat wash over Elsa's face as she recalled Anna's words. Beautiful, wonderful, magic, and they acted as an armor protecting her against the everyday words stupid, useless, and cursed that followed her around.
But as her heart warmed it seemed to become more vulnerable because things bothered her now that shouldn't, like how much food she was allowed.
No one had ever wanted to get close to Elsa before. No one had ever bothered to look past the ice powers and push past their fear of her long enough to get to know the girl behind them.
Elsa hadn't even known that she could be someone else, someone besides the girl with ice powers. They had been her defining trait, consuming the life she'd lived so far. The idea that there was more to her or someone underneath it all that anyone could actually want to be friends with had never occurred to her.
But some how Anna did.
Somehow in Anna's eyes Elsa wasn't dangerous. Somehow she liked the girl underneath and in spite of her powers.
But Elsa wouldn't see her tonight.
She couldn't. Not with the bruise that was currently forming on her face.
Because Anna would care. Which meant Anna would ask questions, and Elsa didn't know how to explain. She knew, somehow, that Anna would not understand why her lack of control merited the strike and she didn't know how to explain it.
Didn't want to explain it.
Why? Why was she here?
Elsa didn't understand. She had almost walked right out of the bushes before she realized that her pond was already occupied.
Anna was there, without being called. Her head and shoulders slumped as she shuffled blindly around the pond scuffing her toe purposely on the thawing ice. And Elsa had a moment to appreciate the reversal of their positions as she stared out, hidden from the view of the girl on the ice, before a dejected sigh escaped Anna and Elsa suddenly became aware of the defeat written in every line of the younger girl's body posture as she wondered closer towards the pond's center.
The normally energetic girl looked so down heartened in that moment as Anna gave a final lifeless twirl before flopping down to lay on the ponds surface that Elsa's breath lodged in her chest and she nearly called out to her in her concern despite herself. She had to quickly clamped both hands over her mouth in an attempt to physically hold herself back as her heart constricted with concern before a different sound sent all thoughts of caution from her mind.
The ice that Anna was laying on was beginning to groan. Sharp cracking noises piercing through the still night air and ringing in Elsa's ears.
"No!" sneaked past her lips in a barely audible gasp. "No! Anna!" and as the sounds grew louder so did her voice.
"ANNA!"
But as she abandoned caution and fear coursed through her veins as she ran forward desperately she saw the little red head jerk her head up, face turning towards her shout, before their eyes met for one agonizing second. Confusion just barely beginning to enter Anna's expression before the ice below her shifted and terror took over for a brief moment as she tried frantically to scramble to her feet before the ice below her creaked one last time and shattered and Anna vanished into the dark water below.
"NO!" ripped out of Elsa's throat as the red hair vanished below the surface, branches tearing at her face and clothes as she rushed down the slope her terror overcoming her as she threw out her arms towards the pond and the ice rushing through her veins exploded out of her towards the pond.
Save Anna! Please, not Anna! Not her, not her! Save her! Please not her! The shouts rippled through Elsa's mind as her powers raced forward in front of her.
It was t0o slow for Elsa.
The landscape in front of her freezing over faster then she could run but still too slow. She could feel each heart beat in her chest each gasping breath of air. Too slow. Her powers had reached the ponds edge. Thump. The pond was freezing over. Thump. The frost was approaching the hole Anna had disappeared through. Was it seconds or minutes ago? Elsa couldn't tell. Save her. Elsa was sobbing. Begging. She'd finally reached the edge of the ice. Something was dripping down the side of her face from a branch she'd barely registered she'd scraped by.
She couldn't breath.
And the pond exploded.
A column of ice shooting upwards from the center and supported on it, encased in the blue light that accompanied every display of Elsa's power, a coughing, shivering Anna curled up and clutching desperately at the ice encasing her.
And Elsa was sobbing. Relief and terror still mingling, in her veins, in her chest, overflowing outwards.
She couldn't speak.
She just scrambled over to the trembling girl, the ice parting to let her through, and clutched the shivering girl to her chest her entire body shaking as she sobbed and Anna's trembling fingers reached forward and clutched her back.
There was no where else to go.
Elsa hadn't thought twice. She was breaking so many rules by bringing Anna here but she couldn't bring herself to care. She had picked up the shivering girl with an ease that would have surprised her at any other time.
But all she had been thinking was that she needed to get Anna warm. And the only place close by was the cabin she lived in.
There was no going back now.
She was now eternally grateful that she hadn't allowed the fire to die out.
She rushed inside still caring Anna who had begun shivering more violently and only hesitating for a second before she detoured slightly from the fire.
Grabbing the bedding of one of the beds she dragged it behind her as she carried Anna over to the fire and set her down in front of it.
Anna's eyes were wide even as her teeth chattered as she stared around the mostly barren cottage. Elsa tried not to let it distract her as she set to work unbuttoning and pulling the younger girls soaking outer clothes off of her.
Anna's body temperature was lower then Elsa's.
Anna actually felt cold. Not that the cold ever bothered Elsa, but it was disconcerting to touch another human who had a lower temperature then her own. And she was frightened of how it must feel for Anna.
Most of Anna's clothes were already iced over when Elsa finally managed to pull them off her. She left the under clothes tucking one of the lighter blankets around Anna's shaking form before squatting them both down by the fire with Anna placed firmly in her lap and cocooning them both inside the quilt.
The sudden lack of movement made the silence between them suddenly apparent as only the crackling of the fire and the pair's frantic breathing.
"I'm sorry" Anna's little voice broke out as her shivering slowly subsided. "Elsa I'm so so s-sorry."
"Shhhh" Elsa hushed her quietly "It's not your fault Anna" and she rubbed her hands up and down Anna's arms, trying to both comfort and warm the other girl. Not even realizing, as she sat embracing the other girl, that this was more physical contact then she had ever experienced before with anyone in her living memory.
Anna's body temperature was slowly improving. Elsa could feel heat beginning to radiate from the girl again.
Standing up, deciding that at this point her own body temperature would hurt more then help Anna, Elsa walked around in front of the girl. Kneeling down, she secured the blanket back around the shivering girl as Anna seemed to try to sink further into herself.
Elsa's heart had not stopped its frantic beating since the first cracks of ice had appeared on the ice. Then again, perhaps it was actually slower and she was only more aware of it. Each beat reminding her of how very lucky they had been. How very close that had been.
How lucky she was that the heart of this beautiful and terrified girl in front of her was still beating.
So without a second thought she leaned forward and pressed her lips gently to Anna's still too cool forehead. Pausing there for a moment as she savored the very alive girl in front of her, breathing in the scent of her hair and feeling the tremors of her quiet sobs quaking through her body.
"I was so scared" Elsa breathed as she clutched at Anna's blankets and she slide her forehead down to rest against Anna's. "So scared."
Anna's wide blue eyes were staring up at her filled with a desperate and silent apology as she tried to hold back tears.
"You saved me." She finally whispered up to Elsa. "You were my hero."
Sincerity threaded through every word as a storm of emotions chased around her expression. "I'll never go on the ice again." She swore. "Not without y-you there. Never ever again, I promise."
"I trust you." Elsa said quietly, sliding backwards as overdue relief finally spread through her and she settled into a more comfortable position on the floor in front of the younger girl before her eyes alighted on something in Anna's hair.
She stared.
"Wha-" Anna began reaching up to see what her hair could possibly be doing to cause such a look of alarm on the older girl's face but Elsa's arm intercepted hers.
"Wait." She breathed out. An accomplishment because it looked like she had stopped breathing all together.
Hesitantly, moving so cautiously that Anna's mind began to spin with horror at what dangers could possibly be lurking within her nest of a hairstyle, Elsa reached forward to stroke a length of Anna's hair.
Her eyes alight with fear and with another emotion Anna couldn't quiet place until she realized it was the same expression Elsa had worn on the day they had first meet.
Well, the day Elsa had first meet Anna.
Elsa's eyes held fear, and not a little wonder, as she carefully pulled at a few strands of Anna's hair. The white strands of hair separating from their copper companions as Elsa held them between her slightly shaking fingers.
A/N: *lets out sigh of relief* Got it!
There you go folks, sorry if the wait hurt. One more chapter of young Elsa and Anna then I'll have a gap between them meeting again.
Excited anyone?
Any feedback and advice is wonderful as well as ideas of what you want to see. I have a basic structure planned out but any brainstorms are welcome, I'm pretty open to any ideas. Thanks for your patience with me.
Now I shall go make brownies. Chocolate Ahoy!