Aha! Yes! I finally wrote another chapter! I'm so proud of myself!
You guys have been absolutely AMAZING! I can't believe this story has almost 20,000 views! WOWWW! I'M SERIOUSLY BLOWN AWAY! I never expected this kind of response! Thank you all so much for the sweet comments and the urges for me to write more! I want to actually finish this story, so keep an eye out for the next chappie!
LOVE YOU ALL BUNCHES!
XOXO,
OceansAria :)
"Ah!" Anna screamed, suddenly awaking from her nightmares. Her heart was racing as she sat up and glanced around. She was safe—she was still bundled up in the back of the sled. Everything was fine.
Except the sled wasn't moving.
Struggling to get to her knees to peek around, Anna found the bench in front of her completely deserted. Sable snorted and pawed at the snow from where she stood, solemn, tied to a massive pine. The bite of the cold mountain air pinched at the princess's cheeks as she pulled herself to a standing position. Throwing one leg and then the other slowly over the bench, she carefully maneuvered out of the back of the sled, huffing and puffing the entire way.
Snow fell around them softly, muffling every noise she or the horse made. Anna stepped off the sled—and sunk at least a foot into the snow. "Uh!" she cried, irritated. "Now my stockings are soaked!"
Suddenly, behind her, there was a crack!
The princess froze, forgetting about her minute issue. She settled her hand on her womb protectively. Glancing over her shoulder, she squinted through the snowfall. No one was there. Her heart, however, still thundered in her chest. That stick didn't snap on its own . . .
Footsteps led from the sled to the other side of the path, into the trees. Thinking that Cal had decided to tie up and take a pit stop there, Anna followed the tracks. So she wouldn't frighten him, she called out: "Cal, it's me, Anna. I'm coming, okay? So, if you're peeing . . ." she trailed off and blushed, shaking her head. She opened her mouth to say more, but then an arm flew out and grabbed her from behind a tree trunk.
She didn't even have time to scream before a gag was tied around her mouth and nose, and the smell of chloroform hit her like a punch. Just before her eyes closed, she caught sight of Cal's dirty blond hair as he fought to get to her, his desperate yells muffled through his own gag.
His gag slipped just slightly as her eyes fluttered shut.
"Princess!"
The gardens were in full bloom this time of year: roses unfurling there petals and peonies poking their heads up towards the warmth of the midday sun. Elsa could hardly let herself appreciate the beauty of the flowers or the cool breeze—or, for goodness' sake, the handsome man by her side. She worried her bottom lip between her teeth, only able to concentrate on her sister. Hold on, Anna.
"So, Elsa," Lachlan addressed her like an old friend. She whipped her head up and forced a smile in response. "Tell me something about yourself."
She tried to think of something. "Well, I'm twenty-two years old," Elsa began, laughing slightly.
Lachlan chuckled and rolled his eyes. Ducking his head, he said, "I meant something interesting."
Elsa suddenly felt a bout of nervousness. She hadn't had a man interested in her for so long—she didn't know how to flirt or talk about herself. Everyone that knew her, well, they already knew her. The queen tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, which felt warm with her blush. "I like to read is lovey-dovey romance novels. It's kind of my guilty pleasure."
Again, the prince laughed. "See, that wasn't so hard!"
She giggled. "Now tell me something about yourself," Elsa nudged him with her elbow, feeling bold.
"Well, ah," He looked out into the distance. "I haven't been on dry land in a solid three years."
Elsa hmm-ed. "Keep going."
"I've always loved to sail. Ever since I was a boy," the prince went on. "My father loved to sail—so I guess it's in my blood." He bent slightly at the waist, dropping his lips near her ear. Elsa felt her stomach twist at his closeness. "To be honest, Elsa, even though I'm the eldest, I've never wanted to be king. I've always just wanted to be free."
When their eyes met, Elsa suddenly felt more at peace. For in his beautiful eyes, she saw a kindred spirit. Someone who understood exactly how she felt as the oldest, as the ruler, as the person that had a huge responsibility on their shoulders.
Smiling genuinely, she whispered, "Neither have I."
In response, Lachlan took her hand in his—and Elsa didn't recoil this time.
"Anna, please, wake up!" a hushed voice begged. Hands shook her shoulders gently. "Please, Anna! You must wake up!"
Groggily, the princess came to. The first thing she noticed was darkness—the feeling of a cold, stone floor beneath her and the smell of burning wood and molding things around her.
The second thing she noticed was the strong embrace she was being held in—and the man whose arms were around her. Her eyes flew wide open. Gasping, she flung them around his neck. "Kristoff! Oh my gosh! Don't you ever scare me like that again or I'll slap you silly!"
Kristoff laughed in relief; he buried his face into her neck, breathing her in hungrily."I missed you, too, feisty pants." He stroked her back and her hair lovingly. "But you scared me to death, too," he mumbled gruffily, his tone getting slightly angry. "You shouldn't have come looking for me. You could've been severely hurt or even . . . killed. Anna, I don't what I would have done if you or the baby were gone . . ."
She pulled back and stared into his caramel brown eyes, so full of worry and overflowing with love. She rubbed her thumb back and forth across his cheek bone before leaning in to kiss him.
"Ahem," a voice grunted out behind them. Anna glanced up to find not only Cal, but several other familiar faces as well: Kristoff's team of men. Blushing, she cried: "Vladimir! Evan! Holly! So good to see you guys!"
Vladimir laughed his hearty laugh. All of them were big, tall men with broad shoulders, beards, and deep laughs. But Vladimir was the only one with bluish-black hair. He came from another land-some place called Russia. "Good to see you as well, lass."
"Yah," Holly said. He was the smartest of the bunch, with baby blue eyes and bleach blond hair, and a somewhat dopey voice. "But not under such circumstances."
"Aye," Evan agreed. He had blonde hair as well, but brown eyes and a splattering of freckles on his wide nose. He was the only other married one—he had a wife and four children to take care of back in Arendelle.
"Where are we, exactly?" Cal piped up. He looked like a toothpick next to the three large men. "They knocked us out, so I have no memory of the way they brought us."
Kristoff nodded solemnly as he helped Anna to her feet, steadying her with his hands on her waist when she stumbled. "We're in an abandoned castle as far as we can tell. Otherwise, have no idea either on our exact location. They drugged us too. "
"Then why are we here? What do they want with us?" Anna questioned, brow furrowed.
Cal shrugged. Vladimir spoke as if the answer were painfully obvious: "You're the princess, lass. Your sister is the queen . . . and she'd do anything to get you back, wouldn't she?"
Anna's heart dropped to her toes. She clutched Kristoff around his middle, getting as physically close to him as possible with her belly between them. He kissed the crown of her hair, whispering everything would be okay. "They want Elsa to pay them for our return?" Anna squeaked out.
"I'm afraid that's what it's looking like," Evan answered her.
"Yah," Holly joined in. "At first, when it was just us, we kept asking them what they wanted—but they would never say. And then, after they got ahold of Kristoff, we were still confused. We had no money, nothing valuable."
"Except for my wedding band," Kristoff grumbled. Anna glanced up at him.
"They took your ring?"
"Yeah. They were looking for anything of value—that's all I had. I mean, that thing was solid gold, too."
From a ways off came the sound of gruff voices—the bandits were coming. Anna hadn't noticed it before, but they were in a lower area of the abandoned castle, a pit, barricaded in by boulders to high and too sheer to climb easily—well, at least for a very pregnant woman. Mountain men like Vladimir could do it easily.
Cal hissed, "We have to find a way out of here, back to the kingdom!"
"We're trying to think of a plan, boy," Evan growled in reply. "Now hush and keep your head low. Let's see what these arrogant fools want." All three men tensed and readied for what was ahead.
Anna buried her head in her husband's chest. Kristoff murmured, "Don't be afraid. I won't let them hurt you."
She smiled tightly up at him. "I'm not afraid for myself."
Kristoff sighed. "I know." He tightened his hold on her.
Over the top of the boulders popped up a couple of heads. The two bandits grinned with their blackened teeth, wiggling their eyebrows as they spotted their prey. "Aw, isn't that sweet! Husband and wife reunited," the first one jeered.
"And with a bun in the oven, too!" the second one joined in. Their horrible laughter echoed off the walls around them like the cackles of a pack of hyenas.
"What do you want?" Kristoff cried up at them. "Money? Gold? Jewels? We don't have any."
The bandits abruptly stopped their chortling. The first threw out a hand and pointed directly at Anna. She froze.
"We would like to speak with the princess, if that's alright with you, watchdog."
Kristoff shook his head vigorously. "No way. She's not going alone. I get to come with her." Anna nodded in agreement.
A hidden metal door swung open behind them. A third bandit stepped from the shadows, coming straight for Anna. "No! No you can't take her!" Kristoff shouted at the bandit, locking his grip around his wife's shoulders. She fisted her husband's tunic in her hands. "Let me at least go with her! She's pregnant and weak! She's been on bedrest for weeks, please—"
"Sorry, lovebirds," jeered the hideous bandit—he had one eye and smelled of rotting flesh and wore clothes covered in dirt. "But Mr. Stilskin is only interested in speaking to the princess." Before Kristoff or any of the men could react, the bandit reached out and snatched Anna from his embrace so hard her head spun and she lost her footing.
"Anna!" Kristoff screeched in dismay, trying to reach for her. But another bandit rushed up and held him back. He fought as hard as he could, struggling against the fourth bandit with all his might.
As the third bandit—she decided to nickname him Cyclops—led her out of the pit roughly by her arm, Anna turned and gave him a strained smile over her shoulder. He was still fighting against the fourth bandit, eyes boring into hers.
"It's okay, Kristoff. I can handle this myself. Don't worry."
But on the inside, she felt the panic creeping up on her.
What do they want?