Christmas

Anna fidgeted nervously in the atrium at the head of the ballroom. She had spent the entire day prepping for the queen's Christmas Eve ball. She changed her dress three times, finally settling on a pale green one. Over her right shoulder was draped a royal blue sash and on her head was a glittering tiara.

Elsa entered the atrium from the hall. And, naturally, she'd outdone Anna. Her gown was pale blue and silver, her own tiara in the shape of snowflakes glistened and shined. Her own blue sash was adorned with a medal denoting rank that Anna fondly remembered Papa wore. She strode through the room with ease.

"What has you so fidgety?" Elsa said.

"It's just…it's the first time Kristoff's gone to a ball. And, I just…I don't even know why I'm nervous," Anna sat down on the couch.

"Well however nervous you are for him, he probably feels ten times worse," Elsa said.

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"Anna," Elsa joined her on the couch, "He has no need to impress anyone. You have no one to answer to…Though I can't promise I won't force you into a few dances with some of the young men out there. I need to keep them on good terms."

"Why don't you just dance with them yourself?" Anna said, getting up, annoyed, to peak into the quickly filling room.

"Because I'm the queen."

They gave it another twenty minutes before Elsa told Kai to announce them. The familiar blow of trumpets sounded and two servants held open the doors with heads bowed.

"Her Highness, Anna, Princess of Arendelle," Kai called out.

Anna walked in, nodding to the crowed, bowed at the waist. She stepped over to her seat at the right hand of Elsa's much more ornate one, at the head of the room. She quickly scanned the room trying to spot the familiar blonde head and tall bulky frame.

She finally found him, leaned against the wall in a corner. He was dressed in the bunad suit Elsa picked out for him and he looked more uncomfortable than she'd ever seen him. He gave her a small, pained wave and she gave him a sympathetic look.

"Her Majesty, Elsa, Queen of Arendelle."

Elsa glided into the room, hands clasped in front. She gave a polite nod acknowledging the bowed room. Anna saw Kristoff bowed, looking around waiting for when he could rise. Elsa stood in front of her chair and gracefully took a seat, Anna did the same, and the guests resumed their mingling, the band resumed their music, and Kristoff lazily started making his way over to the head of the room.

"My lady," he bowed to Anna, "May I have this dance?"

Anna was certain she heard Elsa stifle a giggle and she couldn't really blame her. Seeing the usually so uncouth mountain man all dolled up and pretending to be a gentlemen was as comedic as it was endearing.

"Certainly."

Anna rose and placed her hand in Kristoff's as they entered the dance floor as a new song began. One hand went to his shoulder while he positioned his own free hand at her waist.

"Just remember the steps I taught you," Anna whispered.

"It's hard to remember a 'lesson' that was more inappropriate than appropriate," he grinned.

"Kristoff!" she hissed, feeling her cheeks catch fire and looked around to make sure no one heard.

Through the dance Anna could hear him muttering the count, his movements were stiff, and often clunky. It probably looked a bit ridiculous to a spectator but Anna was smiling and giggling the whole time while Kristoff whispered things in her ear.

When the song ended, Anna could already see at least two men making their way toward her ready to ask her for the next dance. She nudged Kristoff hard in the ribs.

"Ask me to go get refreshments with you!" she whispered.

"Are you hungry? I'll go get-" he asked, oblivious.

"Yes I'd be delighted to accompany you to the refreshments," Anna said loudly and practically dragged him off the dance floor.

"Honestly," she said at the table of our devoirs.

"I don't know your royal double talk lingo," he said, shoving food onto his small plate.

"Kristoff anyone with eyes could see what I was doing."

He shrugged and smiled as he popped a small pastry into his mouth. She smiled and rolled her eyes. She fought the urge to lean against him. Officially she was a single woman. Elsa kept it that way to keep her trade agreements viable. She liked flirting the princes with the idea of marrying the queen's sister though Anna knew Elsa had no intention of ever forcing her to marry someone.

Though it seemed the universe had a sense of humor because one of the gentlemen who had attempted to get Anna's attention settled instead for asking the queen herself. Anna's eyes widened.

"That is a bold man," Kristoff said.

Anna watched the mime play out. The man approached what might as well be Elsa's throne, bowed. He asked the question. Elsa appeared to wrestle for a minute with brushing the man off before deciding to give in. She rose and took the man's arm.

"She's asking for it," Anna said. This was going to open a floodgate, every man in the room would ask Elsa to dance now.

One hand on the man's shoulder, and one daintily holding the hem of her dress, she twirled with the foreign lord like she was skating over ice. She glittered in the light, and smiled brightly. She was the image of what every queen should be: graceful, beautiful, charming.

"She was everything I wanted to be growing up," Anna said watching her sister, in awe, dance with the man.

"You wanted to be queen?" Kristoff asked. Even his own aversion to all things frilly couldn't stop him from noting how surreal Elsa looked on the dance floor.

"No, never that," Anna gave a haughty laugh, "But I wanted her grace, her poise. She always knows what to say and when. She plays piano beautifully, she even composes music. She speaks six languages, three of them fluently. Firstborn, queen-to-be Princess Elsa. Who wouldn't want to be her?"

"I wouldn't want you to be that," Kristoff said quietly.

He put down his food and pawned off his wine glasses to a tray walking by. He then pulled Anna away. With everyone focused on Elsa Kristoff and Anna slipped out to the balcony, shutting the door behind them.

"I wouldn't want you to be Elsa. I like you."

Kristoff came over and gave her a soft kiss to the cheek. He leaned against the balcony railing and Anna rested her head on his chest.

"You sure you prefer the clumsy spare button?" Anna asked.

"Spare button?"

"It's a…royal thing," she giggled, "I wouldn't trade you either you know. Not even for the handsomest prince in the world."

"You mean I'm not the handsomest in the world?" he asked, feigning hurt.

Anna giggled and smacked his arm. Kristoff smiled and kissed her for real this time. Their lips were the only warm thing in the chilly Christmas Eve air. She felt her hands slide up his chest to cup his face and tangle in his hair. His own hands settled on her hips until he decided he was dissatisfied with the small gap between them and tightly wrapped his arms around her middle, pulling their bodies flush.

She emitted a small squeak at that and he laughed reflexively but it was swallowed up in Anna's kiss. They continued that way for several minutes, hands running over body parts, lips meshing, tongues just barely controlled, and hair disheveled.

They only finally broke apart when Kristoff noticed it had started to snow.

"It was sunny all day…" Anna said confused, holding out a hand to catch a few flakes.

"I think this may be your sister's way of telling us to get back inside," Kristoff groaned.

Leave it to Elsa. Anna helped Kristoff clean her lipstick off his face and flatten his hair and she hoisted up her own dress, crooked from Kristoff's grip. The pick up of the snow told them to hurry and the ding of the town clock tower told them it was midnight.

"Merry Christmas Anna," Kristoff said, placing a light kiss behind her ear and in her hair. It earned a shiver from her spine and a gasp but she composed herself to reenter the ballroom.

And nothing was funnier than seeing Elsa glaring at her from across the room, dancing with yet another man and five more waiting in the wings. Anna giggled and gave Kristoff's arm a pat before heading across the floor to rescue her sister.