a.n. ...Okay, so this is a completely random chapter that came out of nowhere. I was having problems figuring out what I wanted to write but I wanted to post something this week and somehow came up with this. It works though, so I'm sticking with it. I hope you like it. The next chapter should be more on track to what I was originally thinking for this one. As always, please read, review, and enjoy!
Oh, I changed the rating of the story for one itsy, bitsy, teensy little word later on in this chapter. It's really not that bad of a word and I didn't really want to put it in (I don't like using language like that), but it really was the best word I could think of to use, so I did.
Chapter 10: Four Hearts, Two Loves, One Family
Like his beloved just down the hall, Kristoff had a hard time falling asleep that night. His brain was just too active with too many thoughts running around for him to get a restful sleep. Unlike Anna however, it wasn't Elsa who plagued his mind. He wasn't just trying to comfort Anna when he told his fiancée that her sister could take of herself; based on his experiences this last year, the queen was more than capable of taking care of herself and he was confident that should would return of her own accord when she was ready. He had no concerns there.
What did concern him was Anna and how this latest development was affecting their lives. Though he had tried not to show it around Anna and Elsa, he was worried about what was happening. His talk with his own personal therapist-slash-reindeer had eased his worries somewhat, but, since dinner, the insecurities and inadequacies he had as the future husband of Arendelle's beloved princess had continued to increase. Dinner was supposed to have put him in a more relaxed mood as he got to know Erik and Anya, his future in-laws, better. Never in his life had he ever thought he would ever have to think about anything like that. He had never imagined himself as one to have a wife, a family, a future. Ever since he was orphaned at a young age, he had been alone. Sure, he had Sven, and later the trolls, but that wasn't really the same. Their presence could never replace the part of him that unknowingly craved human love and companionship. He feared, and accepted, that he would always be alone.
Anna's unexpected intrusion on his quiet, mundane life had certainly put those fears to rest. Ever since meeting the spunky redhead, he had discovered that that unconscious yearning had manifested itself into a need to be by her side whenever possible. He found himself wanting to be with her, wanting to be in her presence. Even his ice excursions, trips where he had always enjoyed the quiet and the solitude, now seemed to be just a little bit lonelier without her warmth beside him. He had realized early on in their courtship that he wouldn't be able to live without her in his life and while he had wanted to propose to her just a few weeks into their knowing each other, he knew that giving her more time to get to know him, to get to know what true love really was like, was a must given her past experiences. It was hard, nearly torturous, for him to have to wait that long, but he would wait as long as he needed to for her. She was worth it. And he would never be alone again.
Now, he wasn't so sure.
Like all of Arendelle, he was aware of what had happened to cause Elsa's ascension to the throne. Like all of Arendelle, he mourned when their disappearance was announced. Like of all of Arendelle, he had grieved at the loss of the beloved monarchs. Like all of Arendelle, he had wondered, albeit briefly, of what was to happen to the kingdom at their unexpected deaths. Recently, like all of Arendelle, he had marveled at how well Elsa had taken to the role of queen and how prosperous Arendelle had grown under her rule. His closeness with the two royals gave him a unique perspective on everything now and he was always aware of how close the two sisters were to each other, how much they relied on one another. They had managed to find their way back to one another and their little, broken family was whole once more. Though not officially part of the family yet (that part would come once he and Anna were wed), for the first time in forever, he felt as if he truly had a place to belong.
A sister he could deal with. He had and he was doing extremely well on that front.
But her mother and father? That was something completely unexpected. He still feared that they wouldn't accept him as Anna's soon-to-be-husband, that they felt she deserved so much better than him. He was concerned because he knew that she did deserve someone so much better. He worried that she would one day realize it herself and while he wouldn't fault her for leaving him, he would be devastated. He would do his best to move on because at least then she would be happy. If her parents felt that way now and somehow convinced her of that, he knew it would hurt so much worse than anything he could possibly imagine. He never felt the need win anyone's approval before. His actions last summer won over the people of Arendelle, royalty included, and he was only doing what he had to do. He didn't even have to think about it. Now he was afraid that one wrong move, one misstep, and his future, a future that he had only recently come to realize he wanted, would disappear before he ever had a chance to live it.
He sighed and did his best to relax. Tomorrow he would spend the day with his future father-in-law and he didn't want to screw anything up. Anna was important to him and he would do whatever he had to to make her father see that.
He closed his eyes for a fitful, restless sleep.
The sun had barely risen when Kristoff found himself waiting outside the castle gates, a harnessed Sven at his side. It was only moments later when he noticed the doors open and a pair of figures walked out. They made their way to him and he stiffened at their approach. It would be a long day with only Sven and Erik for company. He could only hope that their time together would prove to be worthwhile. He put on his most sincere smile as they stopped near him, nodding their heads at him.
"Good morning. I hope you slept well, Kristoff." Anya's voice was genuinely concerned and he couldn't help but feel a bit of hope stir within him that perhaps he was over thinking things after all.
"Good morning…Anya. I…slept as well as I could, given the circumstances." He didn't really want to tell them about his fears and feelings of insecurities. It could only make the situation worse. Erik gave him a curious look as his wife nodded.
"I'm glad to hear it. I know the events of last night were certainly unexpected. I, for one, tossed and turned all night." Kristoff could hear the slight hitch in her voice. Erik placed a reassuring hand on his wife's shoulder to comfort her.
"I know Elsa's all right; she's strong and more than capable of dealing with this herself. We're just going to go up there to let her know that she's not alone and I want to let her know how sorry we are…for everything." Erik's words seemed to soothe Anya and she gave her husband a grateful smile. The sound of quiet footsteps caused everyone to look towards the castle's front door and they were all slightly surprised to see Anna approaching. Kristoff, noticing the solemn way she was walking, headed quickly towards his fiancée to gather her up in his arms. She didn't protest and he pulled her tightly to his chest, kissing the top of her head and murmuring loving words in her ear.
"Anna? I didn't think you'd be up to see us off. I know you cried yourself to sleep last night. I heard you." Her silent sniffs confirmed his words. "You know you don't have to be here. Everything will be all right."
"I know, Kristoff. I just…had to be here. You know how nervous I get whenever you leave." She tried to give him her most convincing smile but the mountain man wasn't having any of it.
"Anna, sweetheart, I know you better than that, you know that." She turned away sheepishly. Kristoff cupped her chin gently in his large hands to turn her head back towards him. Looking into her blue eyes, he could see the moisture gathering there. He used his thumbs to wipe away her tears and gave her a loving smile. "Everything will be all right. We'll find Elsa and bring her back so you can yell and scream and curse at her all you want." He was pleased to see her eyes twinkle in amusement. "We've dealt with worse. This will just be another day in Arendelle for us, right?" She nodded and he was happy to see that she was finally beginning to smile again. Bending down, he captured her lips with his own. He could feel all of her pent-up emotions, her anger and sadness, her worry and her fear, in that kiss as she kissed him back, hard. Before he had started courting her, he had made a vow to himself that he would always make sure she was happy, that no one would hurt her ever again, not if he could help it. This was his chance to prove to himself that he could protect her, even from those that loved her, as he knew Elsa did.
It was moments before the couple pulled apart, though Anna remained in Kristoff's arms that had somehow made their way back to her waist, encircling her tightly. She rested her head on Kristoff's chest and he brought his down to rest on hers, neither one wanting the moment to end. Finally, the redhead stirred and looked up into the brown eyes of her beloved and she smiled as she saw all of the love and devotion he had for her reflected in those beautiful chocolate orbs.
"Please, bring her back Kristoff. You know I can't lose her again." He nodded solemnly at her pleading voice. "I just want her back so we can be a family again. I can't lose anyone else again. Please." Kristoff's heart was breaking at the pain he knew she was feeling and he looked resolutely at her.
"I will, sweetheart. I will. I will do whatever it takes to bring her back, to show her that we love her, all of us, for her and for who she is." Anna snuggled into him one last time before reaching up to place a loving peck on his check. When they broke away this time, Kristoff grabbed her hand and led her back to the sled where her parents awaited.
As much as they wanted to comfort her, both Erik and Anya knew that they couldn't this time. Their little girl had a new shoulder to cry on, something that both of them were still trying to get used to. Anya had taken to Kristoff almost immediately and when his relationship with Anna was revealed, she couldn't have been more overjoyed to welcome him into the family, though she politely contained her excitement for a more appropriate time. Erik, on the other hand, had a harder time accepting that their baby girl, their little Anna, was all grown up. He knew he really had no right to feel that way; after all, they had been gone for a long time and even before that he knew that they had never really given Anna a lot of attention as their focus had been on Elsa. He was genuinely happy that she had managed to find someone who seemed to love her, quirks on all, especially after hearing the story of Hans and what he had done to Anna and what he had tried to do to Elsa. He had wanted to go out and murder that smug bastard for what he had put his little girls through and he was delighted when he had found out what had become of the Southern Isles prince. Still, he was a little put off by how much she relied on her mountain man and how he always seemed to know what to do or say to cheer her up. Perhaps his wife was right when she gave him that knowing smirk last night and told him he was just jealous that there was another man in his daughter's life that would love her, comfort her, take care of her, and provide for her (not that she needed that much providing for anyway) just as he had always done. He would try to follow his wife's advice and give the boy a chance. He seemed to be good for Anna, at any rate, as was evidenced by the intimate embrace and conversation they were witnessing.
"Erik darling," Anya's voice broke him out of his musings and he turned away from the scene before him to look at her beautiful face. "Give him a chance dear. It's obvious that he loves her and she him. I know you don't want to believe that you have been replaced in her eyes. No father does. But be glad that she found someone as good for her as Kristoff. And don't scare him away. I don't think she would ever forgive us if that happened. She doesn't really know it, but I know she wants us to approve of him. I don't think she would leave him if we didn't give them our blessing, but we can't do that to her. They were happy, all of them, and we just walked back into their lives, upsetting everything they had worked so hard to achieve. We already had one daughter leave; we can't lose another one. We need to make this work. I don't think I could survive leaving them again." Though he didn't know it, his wife's pleading voice and look matched the ones his daughter was currently giving to her own beau, and like the ice harvester, Erik could deny his love nothing.
"Of course, dear. I understand. And you are right, you know. I am just a little bit jealous that she won't come running to us any more with her problems now that she has him." Erik gestured towards the couple who had finished speaking and were making their way back towards them. "She's my baby girl; I just can't help it."
"She hasn't been our baby girl in a long time, Erik. And I will always hate myself for not being here when she really needed us. But we can be here for her now. She has grown up a lot since we last saw her, but she still needs us, just in a different capacity. We can help guide her and encourage her. I know she'll come to us for advice, especially after she gets married. Goodness knows how many times I wish I had my mother to talk to in the early days of our marriage." She giggled at his wide eyes. "You know you were impossible to live with those first few months dear. Anyway," she continued before he could defend himself, "she has made the best of the situation she has found herself in. She and Elsa both. They both have good heads on their shoulders and they don't need us hovering nearby to question their every decision. They'll figure things out on their own; they always have. We'll just wait nearby to offer our support and advice should they need it." Erik nodded at her wise words, struck speechless yet again at the wisdom his wife never failed to display. "Now," Anya's voice was more serious this time, "please bring Elsa back. Let her know how sorry we are and how much we love her and how much we've missed her. I want both my daughters back under one roof. We need our family back, Erik. You've always been the best with Elsa and I know she'll listen to you, no matter how afraid of us she is right now. Let her know that we know we made mistakes in the past and that we promise to never ever let those mistakes repeat themselves. Please?" She grabbed the sides of her husband's long jacket as she stared pleadingly into his eyes. Erik couldn't say no even if he had wanted to.
"I will darling. We made mistakes and it's long past time that we lived up to them." Anya nodded and gave him a squeeze as he bent down to give her a kiss good-bye. Once the younger couple reached them, Kristoff and Erik bid their better halves good-bye as they climbed into the sleigh. With one flick of the reins, Sven took off and soon the sleigh was out of sight of the two women. Anya tentatively reached out to wrap an arm around her daughter's shoulders and was pleased when the younger woman didn't shake it off and she pulled the girl close to her side as they continued to look off into the distance. Eventually, they turned around and together, mother and daughter headed back into the castle, their hearts and footsteps lighter than they had been in a while.