Chapter 11- The Oncoming Storm
The next morning, Anna awoke with a sense of hope in her heart, but as soon as she turned her head to one side, she then sighed deeply.
It hadn't been a bad dream. Elsa really was gone. For how long, Anna didn't know. All because of one petty argument between Anna and her friends, one that the mermaid believed she had caused.
Anna slowly pulled herself out of bed, looking out the window. The skies were full of dark clouds, as if nature itself was mirroring her own mood.
As she slumped downstairs, her hope returned. She half-expected her girlfriend to be there, cooking her some mermaid dish on the grill, wearing a happy smile like all was well.
But no. There was no Elsa, no mermaid food being cooked. She sighed and flopped down on the couch, turning on the TV. There wasn't much on the TVs here on the island, just a few variety channels that Anna didn't care for.
She gazed wistfully out the back window at the ocean, wondering where in that vast expanse of blue Elsa could be. Maybe she had gone back to her people? No, Anna knew Elsa wasn't that desperate. Wherever Elsa was, Anna just silently hoped she was safe and she would return soon.
Anna sighed. Some part of her-her inner romantic, perhaps-wanted to put a message in a bottle and send it out to the sea, in the hopes that maybe Elsa would find it. But she knew the odds of anyone finding it were astronomical.
She stepped out onto the back porch, feeling a strong wind blow across the beach.
"Jeez, what's going on here?!" Anna exclaimed, clinging onto the wooden railing on the porch of her condo.
Just then, she heard a loud knock on her door. "Anna, you in there?" Kristoff's voice called.
Anna headed back through her condo and opened the door. "Kristoff?" Anna inquired, seeing her friend at the door. "What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same thing," Kristoff remarked.
"What do you mean?"
"Haven't you been watching the Weather Channel?" he asked. "There's a big-ass storm heading straight for the island. Like, so big it's almost a low-class hurricane."
"Wait-what?!" Anna exclaimed. "Where is everybody?!"
"Up at the hotel. It was built to withstand big storms like this," Kristoff explained. "Moana wanted every guest in there pronto until the storm passes."
"You mean they aren't gonna evacuate the island?"
"It's too risky for that," Kristoff told her. "All flights and boats are halted. Unless you want your boat to capsize or your plane getting struck by lightning."
Anna sighed. "I understand, but...I'm just worried about Elsa."
"Why? Where is she?"
"She left," Anna replied. "There's something about her that you need to know, Kristoff. But you have to swear to me that you'll never tell anyone else."
"What is it?"
Anna sighed. "Elsa isn't human. The truth is...she's a mermaid."
Kristoff's eyes widened. "You're kidding, right?"
"No, I'm serious," Anna insisted. "And she's out there, in that storm right now."
"What?! Why?!"
"Because someone else found out," Anna explained. "Another friend of mine. She confronted me about it, and Elsa got upset, and...she ran away."
"Well...there's not much we can do about that now," Kristoff told her. "But if any of the Coast Guards see her, I'll let you know okay?"
"No! Don't tell them about her!" she exclaimed. "If the government knows about her, they'll take her away and study her, and do awful things to her."
Kristoff sighed. "You know that only happens in movies, right?"
"Kristoff!" Anna scolded him.
"Fine, fine, I'll keep a lid on it."
"But you've gotta come with me to the hotel. This condo won't be able to protect you once that storm kicks up."
Anna nodded. "Okay. Just let me grab my things, and then we'll go."
"Be quick," Kristoff urged her.
xXx
Before long, Anna and Kristoff were running towards the main hotel building as quickly as possible, with Anna's suitcase and backpack in tow.
"Man! This stuff wasn't so heavy when I got here!" Anna complained, dragging her case and bag behind her.
"You weren't trying to escape a natural disaster then," Kristoff remarked.
When they got inside the hotel, Moana came running over. "Is that everyone, Kristoff?" she asked.
"I think so, but I'm pretty sure we're missing a few," Kristoff told her. "Those landslides on the other side of the island have gotten pretty bad."
"The other side of the island?" Anna's eyes widened. "Cass and Punzie."
"Who?" Moana inquired.
"My friends," Anna explained. "They're in trouble!"
"Speaking of friends, where's Elsa?" Moana asked.
"She ran away," Anna said. "She's out there in the ocean right now. I don't know where."
"What?!" Moana exclaimed.
"We'll worry about her later," Kristoff put in. "Anna, stay here. Moana, I need you to help me round up any stragglers and get them inside before the storm hits."
"No, I've gotta go help Cass and Punzie!" Anna insisted. "If they're out there, I don't want them getting hurt."
"Fine, go with Kristoff to the other side of the island," Moana instructed. "I'll keep holding the fort here."
"Right," Kristoff replied. "We'll bring them back here once we find them."
"Good luck and get back soon," Moana said. "I'd hate for you two to be caught up in that storm."
"Don't worry, Moana," Anna promised. "We'll be careful."
As they left and got into Kristoff's car, Anna asked, "How does this thing handle in weather like this?"
"Well, it's a big ass SUV; it's built to handle any terrain," Kristoff told her. "At least, that's what the commercial said."
"Yeah, but can it handle super-high winds?"
"Looks like we're gonna find out," Kristoff remarked, starting up the engine.
Anna buckled her seatbelt. "Just do me a favour and try not to kill us both."
Kristoff chuckled. "I'll try my best."
As they rode along, Anna took out her phone and sent a text to Rapunzel.
Anna: Punz, are you and Cass okay?!
There wasn't a reply at all.
Anna's eyes widened. "Oh, God, no. Kristoff, hurry!"
There was suddenly a loud crash of thunder from outside and rain began to pour down over the road. "Not much I can do about that!" Kristoff told her. "The weather just picked up."
"Oh God, oh God, oh God," Anna muttered frantically. "First Elsa, now Cass and Rapunzel? Am I just doomed to lose everyone?!"
"Anna, calm down!" Kristoff shouted. "It's gonna be okay."
"NO IT ISN'T!" she snapped. "My girlfriend left me, two of my best friends are probably DEAD by now, and..." She started to cry. "I'm just so scared..."
Kristoff then stopped the car on the coast road and unclipped his seatbelt, wrapping his arms around Anna. "Shhhh, shhh, it's okay."
"I don't wanna die, Kristoff..." she sobbed. "I'm scared..."
"You won't die," Kristoff told her. "I won't let that happen, and I'm not gonna let your friends die either."
"Y-you promise...?"
"I promise," Kristoff said. He pulled out of the hug and clipped back in, starting up the car again.
Anna sighed, looking down at her phone. She pulled up Elsa's number and typed out a message to her.
Anna: If you're reading this, Elsa, I love you, and I miss you. Wherever you are, please be safe. ❤ ❤
Anna looked out of the window at the now-drenched road. The road itself was starting to narrow as they travelled by the large rocky cliffs that dominated the far side of the island.
As they drove along, Kristoff suddenly hit the brakes. "Oh, shit." The road in front of them was blocked off by a landslide. "We'll have to walk from here. Do you know where their house is?"
"It should just be just up ahead," Anna informed him. "I think. I haven't come to their house this way before."
"Well, lucky for us, we should still have cell service. Can you check your GPS?"
Anna took out her phone and check the map app. "Oh! We're just around the corner!"
"Awesome." Kristoff took out a raincoat from the backseat of his car, handing it to Anna. "Put that on, and let's move."
Anna put on the coat and she and Kristoff headed out of the car, climbing over the rocks in their path.
"Boy, am I glad I didn't quit gym class," Anna remarked.
"Same," Kristoff replied, shouting to be heard over the driving rain.
They walked around the bend and found Cass's villa, currently being pelted by the torrent of rain.
"Okay, so the house is still in one piece," Anna said, relieved. "Let's go see if anyone's home."
They ran up to the front door, and Kristoff pounded on it with his fist. "Yo! Anyone in there?!"
The door then opened to reveal Rapunzel, her hair very wet. "Anna?" she asked.
"Punzie!" Anna exclaimed, hugging her friend. "Thank God, you're alright."
"We're fine," she said. "But why are you guys here?"
"We came to get you and Cass," Anna explained. "We heard about the landslides on this end of the island."
"There's a big-ass storm, in case you haven't noticed," Kristoff added.
"Cass told me to wait here," Rapunzel said. "Our power generator blew out, and the substation is a few miles away."
"Why are you staying here?!" Anna exclaimed.
"Our place was built to withstand the storm," Rapunzel informed her. "At least, that's what Cass said."
"Where is she now?" Anna asked.
"She could be trying to get the power back... but she's been gone a while."
"Shit," Kristoff muttered. "And we can't drive to the substation because of the landslide."
"Kristoff, you get Rapunzel back to the hotel," Anna instructed. "This house might be safe from the storm, but it's probably for the best she's safe with everyone else. I'll go and look for Cass."
"Alone?" Kristoff asked incredulously. "Anna, are you nuts?!"
"Someone's gotta go save her," Anna told him.
"Yeah, but you can't go by yourself!"
"Watch me," Anna replied, heading out into the storm.
"Anna!" Kristoff called out to her.
"Let her go," Rapunzel said to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I trust her to find my girlfriend."
He sighed. "Be safe, Feisty-pants," he murmured.
xXx
Anna trudged through the storm, trying to find her way to the power substation. The rain was getting worse, and the winds were beginning to pick up as well. She held her hand over her head to try and get a better view, but the wind and rain made the visibility awful.
Part of Anna wondered if she should even help Cass at all. After all, she was the reason Elsa left. But then the other part of her remembered that, Elsa or not, Cass was still her friend. She had to save her, if only for Rapunzel's sake.
She scowled, her heart filling with determination. "I'm coming, Cass."
Anna tried to scrape her legs up the steep slope, panting heavily. "Guugh! Come on Cass!" she called out to her. "Where the hell are you?!"
After another minute of climbing, she finally reached the top of the slope. As she looked around, she could just make out the large power substation a mile or so ahead of her.
"Cass!" Anna cried out for what seemed like the thousandth time. She could see most of this side of the island from up here, or at least a faint outline of it due to the rain and wind.
She started running down the other side of the slope, heading towards the substation as quickly as she could.
As she stumbled down the slope, she heard a soft audible groaning. She stopped in her tracks, looking around. "Hello?" she called out. "Cass, is that you?"
"Anna..." Cass's voice weakly moaned. "Down here…."
Anna ran towards the source of the voice. "I'm coming, Cass! Hold on!"
She soon found Cass lying on the side of the rocks, her leg twisted and blood on her lip. She had clearly tumbled over. "Oh, shit," she muttered. "Cass, are you okay?"
"I don't know," Cass told her. "I…I can't feel my leg."
"Fuck me," Anna swore. "Here, I'll help you up, and we'll find someplace to hunker down until this blows over, okay?"
"No..." Cass groaned. "Leave me…."
"And face Punzie's wrath? Not a chance," Anna told her. She helped Cass stand up, letting her rest her arm on her shoulder for support.
Cass tried to set her foot down, but immediately lifted it back up. "Ow, ow, ow!" she exclaimed. "I think I broke my leg."
"Just stay calm," Anna said. "We'll get through this, I promise."
"No!" Cass denied. "Just leave me here, I'll be fine."
"Not with a wound that bad," Anna told her. "Now come on, we gotta get you out of here." Anna started to hobble down the slope with Cass, hoping to find shelter, or a road back to civilization.
"Why do you even care?" Cass asked. "After what I did...you could've just left me there."
"Because you're my friend," Anna said. "And besides, I forgave you, remember?"
"I know. I just...I still feel guilty about it."
"I feel bad about it too," Anna pointed out. "But my dad told me to always forgive people, no matter what."
"Whatever," Cass argued. "Just…get us out of this storm."
"I'm working on it," Anna replied.
They continued on through the storm, Cass struggling to avoid putting weight on her broken leg. "Did you go to my house?" she asked Anna.
"Yeah," Anna confirmed. "When I heard about the landslides on this side of the island, my friend Kristoff and I came here looking for you and Rapunzel."
"And Raps...is she okay?"
Anna nodded. "Yeah. She and Kristoff are probably back at the hotel by now."
"The hotel? I told Raps to stay at home. She'll be safe there."
"Cass, your house is built on a cliff, and there are landslides going on left right and centre," Anna told her.
"When that house was built, I made sure to include a base of solid concrete so that no matter what, there was no risk of losing my house in a landslide," Cass replied. "I knew the risks when I signed up."
"Did you know there was gonna be a storm this bad?" Anna pointed out.
"Yeah. That house is built to withstand up to category-three hurricane winds."
"Well, I wouldn't take any chances," Anna said. "Besides, we can't exactly get your leg patched up at home."
Cass sighed in defeat. "Fine."
Just then, Anna's eyes lit up. "Cass, look!" She pointed up ahead. "There's a road!"
"Great!" Cass cried. "Now, we just gotta hope that somebody comes by."
"Or we can follow it, and it'll take us back into town," Anna replied. "We're not gonna get anything done just by sitting around."
"I can't walk that far on a broken leg, and I'm pretty sure you can't carry me."
"You'd be surprised," Anna remarked. "I'm hella strong."
"More like hella stupid!" Cass retorted.
"I WON'T LEAVE YOU BEHIND, GODDAMMIT!" Anna shouted. "This isn't about Rapunzel anymore. It's about the fact that I refuse to let my friend die!"
"Anna, there's no need to push yourself," Cass told her. "You've already done enough for Raps and me."
"I don't care," Anna said. "I'm not gonna stop until you're safe."
"You're so stubborn," Cass remarked. "I guess Elsa likes girls like that."
"I don't know. I never got the chance to ask."
Cass sighed. "How have you been holding up since last night?"
"Barely," Anna said. "I was so used to her being there, and it just...it felt terrible to wake up and not see her face."
"Well... here's hoping you and her get your happy ever after…." Cass then coughed. "If we live to see it."
Just then, they heard a car horn honk behind them. They turned around and saw Kristoff's SUV pull up next to them.
Kristoff rolled down his window and hollered, "Get in! Hurry!"
Anna opened the door to the backseat and helped Cass in, then climbed in herself. As they drove away, Anna asked, "What are you guys doing here? I thought you were going to the hotel."
"We were," Kristoff said. "Until somebody made me turn around and start looking for you two." He shot a glance at Rapunzel, who was in the passenger seat.
"We couldn't just leave you!" Rapunzel excused.
"R-Raps..." Cass weakly said.
Rapunzel looked down at the woman she loved and stroked her hair. "Hey, hot-stuff." She looked down at Cass's broken leg. "Oh my God. Cassie, what happened to you?!"
"Fell down the slope," Cass answered. "Hit...hit a rock...broke my leg."
Anna looked at Cass with concern. "Cass, stay with us, okay?"
"I'm really...really tired," she said. "I'm just...gonna take a nap..." With that, Cass's eyes closed.
Rapunzel covered her mouth in horror. "Is...is she...?"
Anna checked her pulse. "No. I think she's just passed out from the pain."
"She needs a doctor!" Rapunzel exclaimed.
"Hang on girls, I'll get her back to the hotel. I'm pretty sure there's a first aid pack there," Kristoff explained, driving away.
"Didn't you hear me?" Rapunzel said, annoyed. "She has a broken leg! A first-aid pack isn't gonna be enough to fix that!"
"Calm down, Punzie," Anna put in. "I'm sure there's a doctor back at the hotel. Right, Kristoff?"
"Hope so," Kristoff said. "You girls sit tight back there. I gotta concentrate. It's not exactly easy to drive in the middle of a storm."
xXx
Finally, after what felt like hours, they arrived back at the hotel. Kristoff scooped Cass up in his arms and rushed inside, with Anna and Rapunzel close behind him. "Yo! This woman needs a doctor, ASAP!" he shouted.
The entire lobby was packed with people from all over the island, all being attended to by Moana. "Kristoff?" she asked.
"Moana, are there any doctors here?" Kristoff demanded. "This lady's hurt real bad."
"Shit," Moana swore. "I'll start looking. You clear a space for her. Make sure to keep that leg elevated."
Some of the civilians got to one side, as Kristoff lay Cass on the couch and Anna and Rapunzel got to her sides. "Hang on, Cass," Anna said softly.
Moana walked up to them, bringing with her a tan-skinned woman with long black hair. "I found a doctor," she said.
The woman nodded. "I'm Doctor Jasmine Raihani," she said. "I'll do my best to help your friend."
"Thank you," Anna said, gratefully.
The doctor knelt down beside Cass, examining her wound. "I'm gonna need to sterilize the wound. Can someone get me a first aid kit?" She asked. "And something to wrap her leg up in?"
"Already on it," Moana acknowledged.
Anna sighed. "She's gonna be okay."
Kristoff looked out of the window, seeing sunlight start to pour through the clouds. "Hey, look! The storm is clearing."
"Thank God," Anna remarked. She walked out of the hotel through the rear exit, heading back towards her condo. As she passed by the beach, however, she saw something-no, someone lying unconscious in the sand. As she took a few steps closer, she noticed that where this person's legs should have been...there was a sky-blue fish tail.
Her eyes widened. "Elsa...?"
xXx
Author's note: She's baaaaaaaack!
