A/N: Thanks to everyone who's followed/favorited and/or is reading but not reviewing.:)
Thank you to CieloFede for beta-ing.:)
bananas-rule-2015-I PMed you about your guesses.:) Thanks for the review!:)
dmcreif-Lol, I'll be sure to include that in the next chapter.:) (I think it'll fit better there than in this one.:)) Do you want me to confirm whether your suspicions are right or not, or just wait to find out in the story? It doesn't matter to me.:)
NrDg-Elsa will actually 'do something herself' eventually. She's just not ready yet.:/ I just didn't think Elsa would be instantly okay after all that time she spent isolated in her room and everything else. She'll be lots more confident by the end of this story.:) Anna is Elsa's weak spot, so yes, she DEFINITELY needs to figure out how to neutralize that kind of threat.:P Thanks for the detailed review!:)
BellaCullen931-Thank you:)
Guest-Yes, they will be toast. Eventually.:P
Gold17-Thanks for the input!:) Sounds like there are very different reactions to Elsa's note she left in the library, lol.:P I love all the opinions.:)
mctiffanygamingmc-Thank you!:) They're in the castle staff, according to one of the bad guys. So I guess you can decide whether he was telling the truth or not.;) :)
Inkfinger2000-Thanks! Without giving anything away, I'll just say Elsa and Anna fix everything and get another happy ending of course.;):)
Fatten Saad-I'm glad you liked it!:) Are you the same fattensaad who has an account? I can't PM you 'cause you're a guest.:P Anyways, if you ARE the same fattensaad, please tell me and I'll tell you via PM.:)
Lindstrom-I don't think Elsa can trust anyone else...she's barely even talked to anyone else since she was a little girl.:/ The secret passages will be back again, 'cause I like them as a plot device.:) Besides, they're kind of Elsa's secret weapon (IF SHE USES THEM PROPERLY:P) since nobody else knows about them.:)
On to the story!:)
Shortly before dinnertime, Elsa headed outside to the courtyard to find Anna. Anna wasn't there, although the targets from Anna's shooting lesson were still up. Elsa decided to look in the castle gardens since she knew Anna loved being out there, as did Elsa herself. Tongue twisters are hard, even when I don't stutter. I'll have to practice with Anna some too. Anna would think it's hilarious. Elsa's lighthearted thoughts were abruptly interrupted when she saw Anna climbing a tree and a dark figure a short ways up into the tree next to the one Anna was in. Wait a minute… Knowing she was probably awful at climbing trees since she hadn't done it in so long, Elsa just stamped her foot, letting a platform of ice form under her.
Elsa pretended she had not seen the dark figure and that she was just using her powers for fun. "Anna, look what I made!" she called. Come on, Elsa, stay unperturbed. You saw nothing. Elsa saw a glint of metal from that dark figure and figuratively froze. No, Elsa. You can't freeze up. Don't get paralyzed in fear again. Get Anna. She bit her lip and took a flying leap at Anna, hoping her direction stayed true.
The two girls tumbled to the ground just as the sound of a gunshot cracked through the air. Keep going, Elsa! Get out of here! Elsa ignored the pain from landing on her bruises and scrambled to her feet, yanking Anna after her. Come on, Elsa, check to see if you and Anna got hurt inside. Not here. Just get away. Run.
"What are we doing?!" Anna shouted. "You made us fall, like, eight feet or something! What is going on?"
"Shut up! Just trust me!" Elsa hissed under her breath. Anna is going to give us away! I have to get us out of here, and fast. Whoever that was won't follow us, but there may be more of them out here…
Anna shut up. Mostly because she was surprised Elsa had said such a thing.
Elsa kept running until they were in Anna's room and the door was frozen shut. Only then did she release Anna's hand and allow herself to relax. We made it. Anna is safe. They'll think I retreated into my room, so we're probably safe from being found here. "Sorry about that…"
Anna crossed her arms. "What on earth was all that about? First you were all like, 'Looky what I made!' and then you tackled me and made us both fall. And did I hear a gunshot? What on earth is going on? And are you all right? I know you landed right on your back…" She frowned at Elsa, who was now just lying on her tummy sprawled across the bed.
"Are you all right?" Elsa asked. Now that whatever had propelled her to take action and get the two of them out of there as fast as possible had worn off, Elsa's back and shoulders throbbed something awful, but she just tried her best to ignore it. Elsa, just forget about it. You need to unravel this problem…and soon. What if I hadn't gone outside right then?! And that lotion Gerda put on me earlier was helpful, but that didn't count for landing right on top of them.
"I just scraped my knees a little bit. A certain someone took most of the impact when she was already hurt!" Anna made a face and plopped down on the bed next to Elsa.
Elsa winced when Anna touched her shoulder. That hurts. Really, Elsa, did you have to land like that?! Yes, I did…I had to keep Anna safe. I'm fine. "Anna, please…don't touch me," she said quietly. Why did I say that? Now Anna is going to think I don't want her to touch me at all. I don't mind if she just holds my hand or something.
Anna quickly jerked her hand away. "I'm sorry, Elsa! Wait…is it all right to hold your hand, though?"
Elsa immediately smiled and nodded. "Of course!" Anna knew what I meant. Thank you, Anna. She offered one hand to her sister and stuck her other hand under her chin. "Anna, I…can't tell you what's going on, but just…be careful. Be very, very careful. Do not go anywhere without someone with you," Elsa whispered. "And lock your door whenever y-you are inside." I can't risk letting anyone hear anything I say anymore…
Anna gave Elsa's hand a comforting squeeze. So those awful bruises all over Elsa's back and shoulders hurt her enough that she won't even let me touch her. And there's something dangerous going on that Elsa feels she can't tell me about. Great. Not. I gotta take care of Elsa myself. She may be taking care of me, but she's not taking care of herself. Anna gently pulled her sister's head and shoulders into her lap and just stroked Elsa's hair, remembering Elsa had said she liked that because their mother had done that for Elsa when she was little more than a baby. Elsa was only, like, three…I think she needs someone to do things like that for her now, too. "I hope you change your mind and tell me what's what, but I promise I'll be careful," she said softly. "And I'll even lock the door if it's so important to you." But I hate locked doors…
"Thank you, Anna…" Why is Anna doing that for me? I'm not a little girl anymore…I just feel like I am sometimes. Maybe Anna just knows I feel like that sometimes. She probably does. Elsa sighed contentedly and closed her eyes. Right this moment she was safe with Anna and she didn't have to worry about the creepy things going on in her castle.
Good, Elsa seems to be relaxed now. I wish I knew what was going on. Elsa might be jumpy and I know she overreacts to things sometimes, but I also know she wouldn't have acted like someone was after our very lives for no reason either. Anna frowned at her now almost-asleep sister and kept stroking her hair. "You like that, don't you, Elsa?" she asked softly, not particularly expecting a reply.
"Mmhmm…made baby Elsa feel safe…makes pseudo-grown-up me feel s-safe too," Elsa replied sleepily. Anna's taking care of me…why is she doing that? She's the one in danger, not me…
Anna started to give Elsa a hug and then decided against it because she didn't to hurt Elsa any more than she already was. I'm going to make sure Elsa always feels safe. She deserves it. And what does she mean, 'pseudo-grown-up me'? Doesn't pseudo mean 'not genuine' or 'fake'? Elsa is grown up. She's twenty-one! And…she doesn't feel grown up. That's what it is. Is that 'cause I don't treat her like she's grown up? I've been trying to just give her the love and care Mom and Dad should have given her, but that usually ends with me holding her trying to make her feel better…I don't know… "Elsa, you are only a 'pseudo-grown-up' in the sense that someone has to give you lots of TLC. Which I'm going to do for you. Other than that, I think you're way too mature, actually. You take care of a whole country almost entirely on your own. I love you just the way you are," Anna said firmly.
"I need TLC?" Elsa asked quietly. Tender loving care? Me? Elsa's blue eyes filled with tears, and she abruptly sat up and hugged her sister tightly. You're going to give that to me. Elsa. Just plain Elsa…that girl with the ice powers…that girl who shut her sister out for thirteen years…that girl that can't talk right sometimes…me. Me!
"Yeah, you do. And I'm going to give it to you…Elsa, are you all right?" Anna asked, realizing her sister was crying, although she didn't seem unhappy and she wasn't freezing cold, either. "I'd give you a hug too, but I don't want to hurt your back or something…"
Elsa pulled away from Anna and quickly brushed the tears off her cheeks. "I'm all right. You just made me so happy that you'd w-want to treat someone like me l-like that, that's all. And-"
"What do you mean 'someone like you', like that's something awful nobody should bother with?" Anna demanded. She jumped up and put both hands on her hips. "You are Snow Queen Elsa of Arendelle. You are my sweet big sister. And contrary to what the past might like you to think, you are worth caring about. You are NOT something awful nobody should bother with. If you want to say 'someone like you', someone like you has had way too much pain and hurt done to her ever since she was little. That needs to stop. Someone like you deserves more love and care than anyone could ever give her. Someone like you is fragile and yet tough as nails…I just thought you should know that." And I mean it. Elsa's feelings are so sensitive, but anyone who made it through thirteen years like that has to be strong as steel inside. I know she is.
Elsa bit her lip and just stared down at her hands in her lap. I might be fragile, but I'm not tough as nails. What in the world is Anna talking about? And… "Anna…why did that man slam me a-against the wall like that?" she blurted. Elsa, shut up! You can't talk about this! Be quiet! You're going to put Anna in even more danger…
Anna frowned. What man? Elsa just subconsciously dropped another clue, but who did that to her? "Look, I don't know why anyone would do that to you, Elsa. But it was wrong. That man that hurt you is a creep. You should've frozen him or something."
Elsa held one hand against her back and balled the other into a fist. Every time I think about it, it's like it's happening all over again…and what good did I do by not doing anything? Nothing! Absolutely nothing. They still tried to hurt Anna… "It…hurts…not the bruises so much…just that someone s-still hated me enough to do that…" I fixed all the icy mess I made with Anna's help and people still hate me. "And I'm not broken! You told me so…" Elsa's tears dripped down on her lap, and she jumped when Anna put her hand under her chin. What, Anna? You can't fix this. Only I can…and I don't think I'm going to be able to. But I have to!
"Elsa, look at me," Anna said firmly. "That man, whoever it was, isn't worth one nanosecond of your thoughts. Don't let him hurt you inside like this. You are NOT broken, just like you said. Those marks on your back and shoulders will go away on their own, but you have to make the marks inside go away yourself. You know it's wrong-you just said so. Try to just…um…let it go? Yeah, perfect! Let it go!" And I can't believe someone told Elsa right to her face that she's broken. Because she's NOT.
The slightest trace of a smile flitted across Elsa's face at that. Anna is right. This is a good thing to let go of. Let it go, Elsa! That man doesn't define you. You just need to figure out the puzzle and get him and the rest of the usurpers out of Arendelle. "I like that phrase," she finally replied. "Could I…could I have a hug now? Please?"
"I don't want to hurt you…" Anna hesitantly gave her sister a gentle hug, figuring Elsa probably still felt sore even if she insisted that she wanted a hug. "Oh yeah, and I don't know if you've noticed or not, but you're talking a lot better already. You say whole sentences without stuttering at all now. Which I think is, like, really good! It hasn't really been that long."
Of course it'd be better if I could stop talking like that entirely…but I suppose Anna is right. I do speak better now. And if I can say whole sentences without stuttering, then that probably means I just need to stop for a moment before continuing after that. I'm sure slightly exaggerated pauses probably sound better than the actual stuttering…yes, perfect. That should work. Or, at the very least, help. "Thank you, Anna." Elsa made a point to pause for a moment before continuing, "Maybe I will be able to…say my speech properly soon." There shouldn't have been a pause in that sentence, Elsa.
But Anna didn't notice. She just grabbed Elsa's hands and started goofily dancing around the room with her. "Told ya you wouldn't be 'talking funny' forever!" Then, "Oops!" a moment later when she tripped over one of the many piles of things on the floor in her room.
Elsa began giggling and managed to catch Anna before she fell. "It's prob'ly time for dinner," she pointed out. "Shall we go?"
That night, Elsa found a cryptic note under her pillow. 'Tomorrow. Library 1PM. Come alone.' It was unsigned, but Elsa was positive she knew exactly who had left it there. She crunched the note in her fist, froze it solid, and angrily hurled it out her window. What do those usurpers want with me now? It probably has something to do with what happened outside earlier with Anna, but what? They probably want to hurt me now instead…this time I'm prepared. I will not just do nothing this time. I promised not to tell anyone about what was going on, not to not defend myself. Elsa smiled a bit, knowing she had a way out this time if something went wrong. Or maybe she should just not show up. I shouldn't do that. Showing up may give me more clues as to who exactly these people are and what exactly they are up to.
Just hold it together when you see them tomorrow, Elsa. You have to. Elsa sighed and plopped herself down in the window seat, just gazing outside into the summer darkness. "Hi, Anna," she said quietly when Anna came up behind her.
"What are you looking at?" Anna asked, looking out the window herself.
"I'm just thinking." Elsa pulled her knees to her chest to make room in the window seat for Anna. Wait a minute…why should I obey that note? It isn't signed; and I could very well claim I'd never received it. If I make a meeting time of my own choosing, I will have more control over the situation… "Anna, would you do something f-for me tomorrow?" she asked.
"Anything!" Anna grinned and scooted closer to her sister.
Elsa smiled back. "Number one, how well did you do…on your shooting lesson earlier?" If I could have said that without the little pause, it would have been perfect…
"Hmm. I know all about gun safety now! Does that count?" Anna asked.
Elsa giggled, realizing Anna's comments most likely meant she had had terrible aim. "Did you hit the…targets at all?" Come on, Anna; please say yes…
"I did a few times, but my aim is really bad…"
Elsa's face fell for a moment, but then her expression brightened. Even if Anna's aim is awful, at least she'll have some sort of way to defend herself if she needs to. "Well, that's better'n nothing. Here's what you're going t-to do…"
Just as Elsa was almost completely asleep a short while later, Anna suddenly said, "So why am I supposed to hang out in the kitchen with Gerda tomorrow after lunch with a gun? I don't mind, but it's kind of…strange." And doesn't sound very Elsa-y. What is going on tomorrow that Elsa needs me to stay in one place armed with a gun?
"I can't tell you…but really important," Elsa mumbled sleepily. Must keep my little sister safe.
"I'm not going to tell anybody if you tell me," Anna said honestly.
Elsa smiled humorlessly. "That's not it, Anna…" Not only can I not tell her because it'll put her in danger; if I tell Anna what's going on, she'll follow me instead of staying put with Gerda.
Anna huffed in annoyance. "But I want to know what's going on!"
"You will know eventually," Elsa replied quietly. Once everything is fixed, I will tell Anna everything. I don't like keeping secrets from Anna like this. In fact, I hate it.
Right after lunch the next day, Elsa made sure Anna was safe in the kitchen with Gerda before running upstairs to retrieve the note she planned to leave on the piano. I just need to leave it on the piano and then disappear into the passages and just wait. I'll be able to hear anything those usurpers say in there. Elsa's note simply said that she was unavailable at this time and that she preferred to meet in the Great Hall at 3 P.M. instead.
It was only 12:30 P.M. when Elsa pushed the door open into the library…and immediately wished she hadn't. There sat the two men that had caught her in that guest room on a sofa. Two more stood on either side of the sofa. My plan isn't going to work. I'm stuck. Stay calm, Elsa…stay calm. Elsa hadn't planned ahead for this possibility; she was half an hour early and she'd assumed no one would be there.
"Thought you might come early," the man that Elsa had identified the day before said.
Elsa suddenly realized that none of the four men were wearing masks. That means they don't care if I can recognize them…they're trying to unnerve me by having four of them here. And it's working, she reluctantly admitted to herself.
"What's that paper you're holding? Another snarky note? Bring it over here."
Elsa stayed standing in the doorway, not sure what she should do. At least if I stay by the door, I can bolt if I need to… She wasn't sure she could take on four people, even if she did want to fight her way out, which she most definitely did not. Elsa crumpled the note into a ball in her fist and froze it solid.
"Give me the note," the man repeated. "And shut that door."
Elsa threw the ball of ice containing the note across the room, and it hit the man right in the chest, sending him taking a few steps backwards. "The note," Elsa said simply. Come on, Elsa, hold it together. See if you can talk your way out of this. Except…I can't do that. I'm terrible at talking…
"Your ice didn't shatter."
"No," Elsa replied. "I didn't want it…to." Elsa was nearly shaking in fear, but she did not want to back down this time. Anna is safe in the kitchen, Elsa. Anna is safe. It's okay to actually do something this time. Isn't it?
"You're a freak. Why did your parents even keep you?"
Elsa flinched and a single tear rolled down her cheek, but she still didn't budge. Elsa, they're just trying to get to you. Scare you into submission. Anna is safe, so don't back down this time. "Arendelle is not yours. What difference d-does it make to you whether a freak is i-in charge or n-not?" You're stuttering again, Elsa. That isn't going to help your case.
Elsa felt herself being pushed aside and then the sound of the door shutting. She backed against the wall, her blue eyes wide, as the same man that had shut the door came right up to her. Elsa, calm down. Please calm down. Elsa could feel ice spreading under her feet, but she ignored it. Maybe the man would slip on it and leave her alone.
"I told you to shut that door. You think you're so smart messing up what was supposed to happen in the castle garden yesterday. I'm thinking since you are so determined to keep your precious little sister safe, we'll just have to come up with something else instead, hmm?"
Elsa frowned. "Such as what?" she blurted. Now why did you say that, Elsa? That's what he wanted you to say. She yelped in surprise and dropped flat on the floor as one large fist landed its hit on the wall instead of where she had been standing a moment before. If I hadn't moved quickly enough, that dent in the wall would be on me instead… Elsa scrambled to her feet and edged towards the door.
"Not so fast, missy," one of the other men said, blocking the door.
"I hate you people," Elsa spat angrily. Part of her was scared to death-she was just one girl in that room with four men after her-but another part was boiling mad. "This is my castle! Get away from that door right now!" she ordered. If I can just get out of the library, I can freeze the door shut from the outside and trap them in here.
"Ooh, the ice girl has developed a bit of fight in her," another one commented.
Elsa balled her hands into angry fists at her sides, her eyes darting from one man to another. What am I supposed to do? If I could just get out of here… Since Anna was safe in the kitchen, Elsa had no intentions of backing down this time, but she still didn't want to risk hurting these people with her powers, even if they were being mean to her. Freeze their feet to the floor, Elsa, a little voice told her. Elsa bit her lip as her hand shot out and froze one man's feet to the floor. Now do it again. Three more times, Elsa.
Elsa winced as she was suddenly picked up roughly from behind and deposited on the sofa a moment later. Now what? What is going on? Not sure whether it would actually work or not, Elsa willed her body temperature to drop enough that she would be too cold to touch. She sighed in relief when the man jerked his hands away from her shoulders. It worked. And I didn't have to actually get…violent. Good.
"What did you do?!" the original man Elsa had identified the day before exclaimed. "You're freezing!"
I am the Snow Queen, Elsa thought, but she said nothing. She was too busy watching that man's hand, now holding a knife. Elsa felt like her heart would beat right out of her chest. She had no idea how to disarm someone. She had no idea how to fight at all, or even know whether she should or not. All Elsa had were her instincts and her ice powers, which were already spiraling out of control. Elsa's palms, pressed against the sofa on either side of her, began forming ice all over where she was sitting. Get it under control, Elsa! You can't lose control now! Just defend yourself and get the heck out of here.
You told Anna not to say that, and you just thought it. That's a double standard, Elsa. Stupid. Elsa scrunched her eyes shut and shook her head. At least it's me in danger this time and not Anna. "Anna safe…kitchen…" she whispered to herself; then realized her mistake a second too late.
"Go downstairs to the kitchen and bring her sister back here," the man with the knife announced.
"NO!" Elsa shouted suddenly. Don't you dare touch my sister! She sacrificed herself for stupid me. You are NOT going to take her away from me. "You can just d-do whatever you were going t' do to her to m-me instead! You will not h-hurt Princess Anna! Ever!" Elsa struggled not to squirm or flinch when she felt the knife against her neck. Stay still, Elsa. You've gotten yourself in a heap of trouble…
"Nah, you don't care about yourself enough for that to give us what we want. If there's a single snowflake out of you when Anna comes in here, you're going to get it and then you can die knowing your sister suffered the same fate."
Anna, please don't be in the kitchen. Please, please, don't be in the kitchen. For the first time in her life, Elsa dearly hoped Anna had not listened to her. If they couldn't find Anna, then Anna would be safe. Elsa wondered if she could move quickly enough to freeze that knife well enough and just run off. Too risky. I might end up just slicing my hand and I'd get nothing from the trouble.
Just then, Anna came waltzing into the library, completely oblivious to what had been going on. "Hey Elsa, I was just wondering what you were…" Anna took in the scene before her and promptly slid her hand into the pocket in her skirt. "Up to," she finished.
Elsa was horrified. I was hoping Anna wasn't in the kitchen, but this isn't what I was hoping for. At all. What is Anna doing?! And how did she guess where I was?
Before anyone could make another move, Anna whipped a small revolver out of her pocket and unwaveringly trained it at the man holding that knife to her sister's throat. Anna didn't understand why Elsa didn't simply use her powers or something, but there was no time to question that at the moment. "Release Queen Elsa or I will shoot you," Anna threatened, meaning every word. I have six bullets before Elsa and I are toast. Anna's aim was utterly horrible, and a tiny bit of her was afraid she would hit Elsa if she really did make a shot. Maybe the threat is enough? Please, please, please…
"You think I believe you're really going to fire that gun?" the man taunted. "You probably don't even know how to use it. Surrender the gun or the ice girl gets it."
Elsa made a barely audible whimper at a sudden stinging sensation on her neck. She closed her eyes, concentrating on the fact that Anna had a gun. Anna could defend herself, and she wasn't too terrified to do so like Elsa was. Elsa, you know defending yourself isn't wrong. Why aren't you doing anything?! I'm afraid I'll make them go after Anna or something…
Anna forced herself to hold her hand still. "I'll give you one last chance. Let my sister go, or I'll shoot." I don't want to do this, but anything for Elsa. And I'm gonna have to talk to her about the right to defend herself. She spotted a bit of red on Elsa's neck, and suddenly made her decision. That's too much. He is NOT going to hurt Elsa any more. So there. Anna let her first bullet fly.
Anna's shot missed the man entirely, lodging in the wall instead; but it was still enough to scare him away from Elsa.
Elsa just sat stock-still, too terrified to move. Did Anna really just shoot someone for me? Why?!
Anna realized her sister was still scared and not going to do anything, so she took charge herself. "Drop the knife," she ordered.
The man dropped the knife and shoved it across the floor to Anna. "Please don't shoot," he begged.
Anna scowled. "Big cowardly stupe. You thought it was just fine to hurt the queen of Arendelle." She had no intentions of shooting the man now that she had gotten him away from Elsa, but she certainly didn't mind letting him think she might. "Elsa, pull yourself together," she said firmly.
Elsa slowly edged her way over to Anna, still not quite believing what Anna had done. Anna was actually going to shoot that man for me. The only reason she didn't was because her aim was off. I know Anna wouldn't do something like that if it was wrong.
Anna had spotted a pile of papers on top of the piano that she was fairly certain were not Elsa's. "Elsa, get those papers on the piano," she ordered. I am so gonna owe Elsa an apology when we get out of here. And Elsa has a nasty scratch across her neck now. She should go see if that needs to be taken care of or if it'll be fine on its own.
Elsa retrieved the papers and went back over to Anna, not sure why she was taking orders from her little sister but still not quite ready to refuse. She still felt shaky all over, and she just wanted to go off somewhere and hide. I'm the one with the ice powers, and I didn't do anything. Again. No, Anna had to find me and come save the day. I'm so stupid.
Anna wrapped one arm protectively around her sister and began backing towards the door, still holding her revolver out in her other hand, ready to shoot if need be. "Don't pull any stupid stuff. I will shoot you three horrid numskulls," she threatened.
Out in the hall a few seconds later, Anna slammed the door shut; then saw a man running down the hall. "Oh, there you are," the man said to Anna. "I'm supposed to take you to the lib-"
"Not in the mood. Get in the library," Anna spat out. "Don't you dare touch my sister. Or me."
The man went in immediately when he saw Anna's revolver.
"Now freeze the door shut," Anna told her sister. "We can send them to the dungeon or something."
Elsa held out one trembling hand and froze the door shut as Anna asked her to. What is wrong with me? I'm safe. Anna is safe. We're fine. And now there are four usurpers trapped in the library. "Anna, you…you saved me. And yourself," she said finally. And this is my fault. Because I'm just plain stupid.
"I'm really glad I didn't listen to you and stay in the kitchen," Anna replied, hugging Elsa close. "I think I see now why you wouldn't tell me anything about what was going on."
Elsa just shook her head. "Those horrible people are r-right. I shouldn't be queen. I couldn't even do anything t-to defend myself…I got too t-terrified and I just…got paralyzed and d-didn't do anything!" I'm such an idiot. I move too slow when I'm in a confrontational situation because I'm afraid I'll get overboard violent like I did when those Weselton guards attacked me at the ice palace. Elsa could think of multiple moments when she could have done something and gotten away, but she'd waited too long mulling it over each time.
Anna stowed her revolver back in her skirt pocket; then just picked up Elsa and carried her down the hall to her room. "You know what; I think you need to learn how to fight," Anna announced. "You'd frozen one man's feet to the floor, so you have ways of unleashing non-deadly force. And Elsa, I know you're scared of using your powers to defend yourself because you're afraid you'll hurt someone; but it is not wrong to use force to defend yourself. I know it's not." She laid Elsa down on the bed and glanced at Elsa's neck. "Can I look at that scratch, please?" Anna asked.
Elsa shrugged, still feeling disgusted with herself. Anna is right; I know she is. If I wasn't so stupid, I would moved quicker and frozen all their feet to the floor and the situation wouldn't have gotten so serious in the first place.
Anna ran into Elsa's bathroom and came back a moment later. "I don't think it's bleeding anymore, but you ought to wash it off anyways," she told Elsa, gently holding a wet cloth against Elsa's neck.
Elsa tried to push Anna's hand away. "That stings, Anna!" she exclaimed. "Just leave it alone. It's no big deal." That's my fault because I was too dumb to do anything myself. Why on earth did I freeze up…figuratively…like that?!
"It's a big deal 'cause of how you got it, Elsa! Do you realize that man was willing to kill you just like that and not be a bit sorry about it? Tell me this…Elsa, if I'd been in your place and somebody was holding a knife to my throat and I had built-in defenses, used them to get away, and perhaps, at worst, injured the somebody, would you think that was wrong?" Anna asked. She picked her sister up again and went to sit in the comfy chair in the corner of Elsa's room. It's all right, Elsa. I got you. You're safe now.
Elsa mulled Anna's proposition over, her face buried in her sister's shoulder. No, that wouldn't be wrong. I know it wouldn't. I think it's just because I'm still afraid of hurting someone, even if they're after me. "No," she murmured finally. Elsa still clutched the papers she had taken from the library in one hand, and she suddenly had an idea. Anna knows what's going on-it was insanely obvious. She can help me go over these papers and figure out what to do. Wait, we left four dangerous people in the library…oh no…
Just then, Olaf came waddling into Elsa's room without knocking. "Hey, Elsa, did you know there are three cuckoo-heads climbing out a window down into the courtyard?"
Elsa jumped to her feet, clutching the pile of papers in one hand and her sister's hand in the other. "Anna, those people got out of the library! I know it; I just know it!" she exclaimed. We had them, and they got away! What do we do now?
Anna grinned. "I think I've got a plan. I'll help you. Olaf, go find Kristoff. Elsa, go to the library and guard the one creep that's still in there. You shouldn't have to do much since you froze that one's feet to the floor." Anna's expression grew serious as she put both hands on her sister's shoulders. "Elsa, you cannot freeze up like that again. No pun intended. It's all right to get scared, but you gotta take action anyway. If anyone tries anything on you, freeze their feet in place. Don't think about it; just do it. Got it?" I am so going to convince Elsa to practice fighting and defending herself with her powers later.
Elsa smiled a bit and nodded. "I'll try."
"No, Elsa. There is no 'I'll try'. You will," Anna said firmly, giving Elsa a hug. "Now we gotta run before they all get away. Come on!"
A/N: I promise Elsa will have her own chance to shine soon.:) She's still really hesitant to actually do anything against her enemies, but I think Anna has gotten some sense into her that yes, it's really okay to do something. So...look out soon, creepy 'cuckoo-heads', Elsa is going to be after you soon, and she isn't going to get scared either!:) Anyway...
Next chapter coming soon!:)