Elsa sneezed, little snowflakes blowing out from her breath as she did. She groaned loudly as she collapsed against her mattress, shielding her eyes with her arm from the sunlight coming from her window.
It has been a while since Elsa had been sick, and the doctor said that she had caught the circulating flu. He reassured her that she would feel better after a couple of days, as long as she didn't do anything strenuous, such as do paperwork, play with her loved ones or run a whole kingdom. Y'know, the usual.
Although the sickness took a toll on her body, it had also taken a toll on her powers as well. When she'd conjure up a teacup or make it only slightly colder in the room, she would end up with a mug without a handle and the room's temperature would either drop to a negative or rise to match the temperature outside.
"Milady, it's time for breakfast." Gerda knocked, feeling the cold seeping through the small slit under the door. She heard Elsa sneeze, and then groan loudly.
"I'm not feeling to well, Gerda," Elsa tried projecting her voice, but given that her throat was hoarse and was insanely congested, her voice sounded weak and muffled. "Kindly leave my breakfast by the door."
"Should I tell your sister and little miss?" Gerda asked. Elsa nodded, and then realized that she couldn't see her.
"Yes, please. Tell them not to come by. I don't want them getting sick as well." Elsa informed, sneezing in between words, more snowflakes puffing out. She was paler than normal, which she believed to be physically impossible, and she couldn't stand up, or else she would either be hit by vertigo or faint.
She flopped on her stomach, lazily waving her hand in the air to see if she could conjure up snow so she wouldn't feel so warm, but ended up with a bucket made of ice next to her bed. Sighing, she closed her eyes, trying to let sleep overcome her.
She had been sleeping for what seemed like minutes, but she had actually been unconscious up until late noon time. Feeling extremely lightheaded, most probably from hunger and the sickness, she fought the vertigo when she stood up and opened the door to pick up her meal, not caring if it was already cold.
The tray shaking in her hands, she pushed on walking back towards her bed but didn't succeed. The last thing she heard was the metal tray falling to the floor before darkness washed over her.
A few minutes after Elsa's fall, Anna was walking towards her sister's room, disregarding completely what Gerda told her. She left Elise in her room beforehand, not too keen on risking her health. She noticed that Elsa's door was open, and she took that as an open invitation.
"Elsa, how are-," Anna paused mid sentence when she saw Elsa's body lying on the floor, not moving. Her hands flew up to her mouth so as to help bite back her scream. Despite Elsa being a lightweight, she had difficulty lifting her sister up on the bed. She put Elsa's her head under a pillow and made sure she looked comfortable first before she ran towards the castle doctor, too much in a hurry to close the door.
Elise was stuck in her room, trying to play by herself but she didn't enjoy it as much as when she was playing with either Elsa, Anna, Olaf, anyone, really. Anna made her stay in her room because Elsa was sick.
The problem was that she didn't quite grasp the concept of sickness very well. She knew that people wouldn't be playing as much because they are always tired and sneezing and sometimes crying and vomiting, but she didn't know that it was contagious. She just thought that sick people wanted to be alone.
Wanting to surprise her mama, knowing that it usually made her feel better, she snuck out of the door, checking if the coast was clear before anything else. She walked the short distance towards Elsa's room, and saw that the door was wide open. Elsa was sleeping, so she couldn't exactly surprise her by attacking her awake; that would be rude.
She tiptoed quietly towards her mother, removing her shoes first before clambering up the large bed. Elsa's face looked extremely peaceful, almost angelic, even. Elise stared at her mother for a short while before remembering her purpose for going in her bed chamber in the first place.
"Mama, wake up." Elise said softly, shaking her arm a bit. This would usually do the trick, but Elsa didn't move a muscle. She thought that Elsa was playing tricks on her, so she laughed a shook her again. "Mama, wake up, wake up."
When Elsa still didn't move, Elise started to panic, shaking her mother's arm harder. "Mama!" She yelled, over and over. Elsa's eyes didn't open, nor did she move her head or her arm or anything. Elise, afraid of what was happening, started to cry loudly, hugging Elsa's middle, resting her head on her stomach as her tiny little body shook with sobs.
"Quickly, she's right here," Anna said, ushering servants and the doctor towards Elsa's room. When Anna saw that Elise was right beside Elsa, she debated herself whether or not to put her in her room or to let her stay there. When she saw Elise sobbing over her sister, her mind had decided.
The servants quickly cleaned up the food that had splattered on the floor, mopping and scrubbing as fast as humanly possible so that they could leave the queen to rest.
"How long has she been like this?" The doctor asked, quickly making his way over to the queen to check her pulse and blood pressure. Her pulse was strong, her blood pressure was a little off, but it was nothing too drastic. Her temperature reached up to 39 degrees, which was extremely shocking since Elsa's body temperature was normally at 27.
"I have no idea. I just came here and saw her on the floor." Anna informed the doctor. He nodded his head once.
Elise stayed the entire time they were poking and prodding over Elsa, ignoring them and staying in her own little bubble. "Wake up, Mama," she would whisper occasionally. Her tears were coming along steadily, but she tried to compose herself. She rubbed circles over her mother's stomach, thinking since she likes her tummy rubs, Elsa would like them too.
"I have diagnosed her majesty earlier with the flu, and I stand strong on my prognosis. She has been overworking, I would presume, possibly being the reason why her body shut down. She wouldn't be out for too long. Please call for me again once she wakes up. Good day, Princess Anna." The doctor said, bowing before leaving the room.
"Elise, I know you don't want to be away from her but I really don't want you getting sick too." Anna said, walking over to the bed to pick her up, but Elise wouldn't have it. She wrapped her arms tighter around Elsa's middle, her little eyes looking up at Anna, almost challenging her to take her away.
Right at that moment, Elsa's eyebrows scrunched up, her hand flying up to her head to help numb the throbbing. She blinked multiple times, trying to adjust her eyes to her surroundings.
"Oh, no, you don't," Anna reprimanded, pushing Elsa back down when she made a move to sit up. Elsa sighed, and then sneezed, quickly turning away away from Elise and Anna.
"Anna, I don't want you or Elise to get sick as well. Please, go. I'll be fine." Elsa argued. She closed her eyes, waiting for them to leave, but she didn't hear footsteps or a door closing.
"Fine? I found you unconscious on the floor. I don't think that's fine." Anna retorted, her voice firm. Elsa shook her head, and then heard her stomach grumble. She realized she hasn't eaten since last night, and despite knowing that she probably wouldn't be able to hold anything down, she had to at least do something to silence her stomach.
"Mama hungry?" Elise asked, hearing the grumble. Elsa smiled softly, seeing that her daughter was doing exactly what she does to her. The sensation was very calming. No wonder Elise likes it when I do it to her, Elsa mused, relaxing a bit.
"A little." Elsa replied.
"Do you have anything particular in mind you want to eat?" Anna asked, pulling the string by Elsa's bedside that connected to the bell that rang in the kitchen.
"Warm broth would be lovely. I don't think I could hold in anything solid for a little while." Elsa said, still polite as ever, even though she's bed ridden and sick. She then turned to Elise. "Would you like anything to eat, little love? You'll have to eat it in your room, though." She asked, raising her hand to stroke Elise's hair.
Elise shook her head. When one of the servants came up, Anna had requested for a bowl of chicken broth and a plate of orange slices. Elsa raised an eyebrow, and Anna only shrugged. "Hey, if I'm taking care of you, I gotta load up on my vitamin C."
"Elise, you really shouldn't be here," Elsa said, propping herself against a pillow so her torso would be slightly elevated, but not exactly sitting up. "It's not fun being sick."
Elise paid no attention to her as she rested her head on Elsa's stomach, no signs of moving away. "Alright, then, but don't say I didn't warn you."
When the food arrived, Anna took the tray from the servant, closing the door behind her with her foot. She took her plate of orange slices and placed it on a nearby table before heading towards Elsa. Elise sat up so Anna could place the tray on Elsa's lap.
Elise immediately took charge, much to Elsa and Anna's amusement. She tucked the edge of the napkin into her nightgown, using it as a makeshift bib. Elise took a spoonful of broth, blowing on it gently since she sometimes saw Elsa doing that, and then lifted it up to Elsa's lips.
"It's alright, little love, I can do it," Elsa said, taking the spoon from her. The broth was exactly what she needed. It was light enough so she could hold it in, and it would fill her up just enough to power through the afternoon. Elsa was about to take another spoonful when Elise snatched the spoon from her hands.
"Mama, say 'ahh'," Elise said, using her mother's usual feeding routine for her. With a small chuckle, she opened her mouth and allowed her daughter to feed her. Anna looked on, laughing along with the two. Never in her life has she seen Elsa with her eyes that bright and a smile so genuine. It was different, but it was a good different.
Elise was determined to make a Elsa finish the bowl, but made she made her stop feeding her after a few more sips. Elsa looked down and saw that she had only consumed only half of the bowl. Huh, turns out I wasn't that hungry, she thought.
"I'm full now, little love," Elsa said politely, removing her makeshift bib, patting it on the sides of her mouth. "Thank you."
Anna cleaned up, placing the tray outside the door. She went to the bathroom and took a face towel, running it under cold water before putting it over Elsa's forehead.
"Oh, that feels nice," Elsa commented thoughtfully, closing her eyes to let sleep take over her once again.
"Come on, Elise. Let's give your mama some space," Anna whispered, picking up her drowsy niece and carrying her back to her room.
So many requests, I love it! This one was something that popped up in my mind; it wouldn't leave me until I wrote it down. I have your requests queued, so I'll just be writing the rest of the chapters based on your requests. (However, if I don't write your request, that probably means that I couldn't/wouldn't because of reasons. Don't be offended, though. I still love you.)
Please do tell me what you think, and keep those requests coming in! Wishing you all the best!