Anna checked her image in the mirror, making sure her braids were even and her clothing in order. Her lady in waiting, Hila, straightened her sleeve shoulders.
"You're all set, Princess Anna. Can I get you anything else?"
"No, thank you Hila. Can you let Kristoff know I'll be down to visit him soon? He's probably with Sven by now."
"Of course, Highness" Hila curtsied and left the room. Anna sighed; perhaps it was time to find some friends within the kingdom. She could do without being addressed so formally. Then again, even other royalty would be dictated to address her as Princess, family excluded. And Elsa was the only family she had left. Anna turned and left the room hoping to spend some time with Kristoff before returning to attend to the duties Elsa had assigned to her. The Queen had many more and difficult obligations but the Princess was still left with responsibilities. Some of the minor disputes, those not requiring the official law to be passed down, could be handled by her.
Anna entered the stables and glanced in the first stall, hoping to find her consort and, after Elsa, closest friend. In some ways she was closer to Kristoff than Elsa, but not for lack of trying. She was stubborn and would not cease her mission to repair their relationship. In the meantime she glanced in the next few stalls. Eventually she heard sounds coming from the grain room.
"Sven you can't have every type of grain. Why? Because they literally won't fit in the bucket. No, look at this- they won't fi- now look at what you did. Move over." Anna peaked her head in. Grain covered the floor, and in the middle stood Kristoff, his hands on Sven's antlers.
"How's it going?" She asked innocently. Sven grinned, as much as a reindeer could, and Kristoff blew out a breath and motioned towards the floor.
"Oh ya know. Breakfast. At least we didn't make as much of a mess as usual." He stepped over the heap of grain and drew Anna in for a kiss. "How are you this morning?"
Anna smiled at the greeting, "I'm just fine, and how are you?"
"Well," He stepped back and gestured toward the pile of grain, which Sven was currently munching his way through, "the usual. We're apparently almost done with breakfast."
"Have you eaten yet? We could have real- human- breakfast if that grain hasn't already filled you up." She smirked.
"I get the impression you think you're pretty clever." He raised his eyebrows expectantly.
She crossed her arms and jutted out her chin defiantly. "Um, yeah, I kind of do. So, breakfast?"
"Sure, where do you want to go?"
Anna gestured toward the castle. "I know a place that's rumoured to have some pretty good food, and I think I can get us in for free." She said the last bit conspiratorially.
"Are you sure we should go to the castle? I mean, ya know, with the Queen-"
"I'm pretty sure you can call her Elsa." Anna corrected.
Kristoff responded with a wave of his hand, "Oh no, I'm not exactly comfortable with that. I don't really think that's appropriate-"
"Well I do, and I'm the princess, so…"
"And she's the Queen," Continued Kristoff, "So I think I'll just keep addressing her as such. I'm not saying her title is more important, I'm just a lot closer to you."
Anna gave a small huff then shrugged, "Alright, you do what you want, but what I want is breakfast. Are your ready to go?" She reached for his hand, to let him know she wasn't angry with him.
Kristoff took a breath in and paused, then released it as his stomach let out a rumble, "Yeah, I suppose so. Reindeer food just doesn't hit the spot. No offense Sven." But Sven was not listening, his nose still buried in grain with a contented look on his face, "Shall we?" He asked Anna.
"We shall." She turned, still holding his hand, and led him out of the stables toward the castle.
The royal dining hall was cavernous and they felt a mildly ridiculous eating in it with just the two of them. Instead they tucked themselves away in a corner just off the kitchen, perched on a window overlooking the fjord. Kristoff seemed more relaxed in the kitchens anyhow. Anna got the impression he still wasn't comfortable eating in the ornate banquet hall, which made sense for an ice man with a childhood of forests and trolls. Kristoff looked visibly relieved when she suggested they take their food to the window sill instead of the alternative.
They leaned back, facing one another and holding steaming bowls of oatmeal with sweet cinnamon and raisins, tangy apple slices, and savory walnuts.
"You didn't seem to mind that I grew up in a castle when I first told you. Where did you think I took my meals?" Anna said between bites.
"When you said you grew up in a castle I kind of assumed you meant as the staff, not as, ya know, royalty or something." Kristoff inhaled deeply, relishing the smell of the mouth-watering breakfast. He wasn't used to such luxury, but thought perhaps he could get used to it.
Just then a server approached and bowed their head toward Anna.
"Is there anything else I can get you, your highness?" He stood with a bowed head, not making eye contact with either of them.
Anna glanced at Kristoff, who gave a slight shake of his head, "No, thank you, this is perfect."
The server nodded and backed away before turning toward the kitchen and moving on to other duties. Perhaps Kristoff wasn't ready for such extravagance, as his insides squirmed at the self-effacing nature of the server.
"Do they always act like that?" He set down his bowl, suddenly full.
"Like what?"
"He was so…meek. He wouldn't even look up."
Anna glanced back toward the doorway through which the server disappeared.
"Oh, well, I think that's just the way they're trained to act. But I think they were just doing that for you."
"For me?" Kristoff furrowed his eyebrows, "I don't understand."
He assumed the staff weren't instructed to act laid back in the presence of the Princess and adopt a formal attitude around guests. Especially ice harvester guests covered in reindeer fur.
"Well I'm actually pretty close to the staff, especially the ones in the kitchen. Comes with the territory I suppose."
"How do you mean?"
"Growing up Elsa and I used to come down here to play, and after she…went away, it was just me but I kept coming back. Mama and Papa spent a lot of time attending to affairs of the state, so I had a lot of time by myself. The staff helped keep me company, even when I was more of a hindrance than help." She grinned, thinking back to the many occasions where her impulsive nature led her down troubled roads.
"Somehow I can imagine that. You seem to get away with a lot. Must be something endearing about you." He smiled at her.
"I assume you are speaking hypothetically, as I'm sure I've never caused you any inconvenience." Anna spoke with sarcastic formality.
"Oh of course not," Kristoff met her sarcasm with his own, "You were pure help on our trip up the mountain."
"That's what I thought." Anna set down her bowl as well, finished and full, "What are your plans for the day?"
"I thought I might try doing some actual honest work today. I've kind of been taking it easy since ice doesn't seem to be in huge demand at the moment. I think people are a little iced-out." He tilted his head and lifted his shoulders sympathetically, "Which is totally understandable even though I know the whole thing was an accident."
Anna sighed sadly, "I know. I get it. Even with the whole debacle over with there's still a lot of damage control to be done. I just wish they knew, that they understood what happened, what Elsa was really like."
"They'll understand, eventually." Kristoff reassured her, "They're already starting to ask for more ice than they were yesterday, or the day before that, or the day before that."
"You mean when the entire kingdom was still frozen over with ice." Anna murmured sulkily.
Kristoff sighed, "The point is, they're coming around. It's getting better, and it will continue to get better. I promise." A moment passed and Kristoff continued, "Which means I'd better get out there and start harvesting that ice. Would you like to come with?"
Anna shook her head, shaking off her cynical attitude and remembering her plans with Elsa, which cheered her up immensely, "No, but definitely another time. Today I'm going to hopefully spend some time with Elsa."
Kristoff raised his eyebrows in surprise, "Wow, I mean…that's great."
"You hesitated- why did you hesitate?" Anna asked incredulously.
"No, no, I didn't hesitate," He hesitated, "I just meant…nothing, I didn't mean anything. I think it's great that you're getting to spend some time with your sister."
Anna squinted at him, "You don't still think she's dangerous, do you?"
"No, I- of course not." He met Anna's accusing stare, "I don't. I just know that she has a lot of, like you said, damage control to do. I'm just surprised- and happy- that you get to spend time together so soon."
Anna regarded him for a moment, then spoke.
"It is good. It's going to be good. I'm going to help her, to get the mess sorted out. Things are going to change." She nodded to herself, "They're going to be better than before, no matter what anyone else says or thinks about it. We're going to be fine."
Kristoff nodded sympathetically, "You don't have to convince me. I believe you."
He leaned across the gap between them and planted a kiss on her forehead.
"What time are you two getting together?"
Anna closed her eyes and leaned into him, then sat back and said, "I don't know. Later today, after we've both gotten some work done." She flashed Kristoff a smile. "And I'll see you later, right?"
"Right. I'll head back to the cottage after I'm done, once Sven and the sled are put away."
"I'll come find you when I'm done too." She said as he rose to leave the kitchens, "Good luck today!"
He turned and gave her a smile, which she chose to interpret as reassuring rather than skeptical, "You too."
And with that he walked through the doorway the server had exited, leaving Anna at the window sill gazing across the fjord. Good luck, she thought, hopeful but unsure she wouldn't need it.