Disclaimer: Still don't own the things. Characters you recognize are from their respective works. I ain't rollin' like that.
Colorado autumns were awesome, in Anna's book. The sun overhead was warm and the wind coming from the mountains was cool, a perfect blend that complemented almost any activity. Especially softball.
The redhead adjusted her hat, reading Mulan's signal and glancing over her shoulder at the rest of her team before taking the mound. They were undefeated so far and they wanted to keep the streak going but... they were also ahead by seven runs in the top of the sixth. Sure, the Lemurs still stood a chance... but they really didn't.
Taking a deep breath, Anna targeted Mulan's awaiting glove, her focus narrowing as she wound up and pitched, the neon yellow ball whizzing through the air and past the batter, firmly secured in Mulan's catcher's glove before the poor Lowerton player even had a chance to swing.
"Strike three!" The umpire called and Anna punched the air; three up, three down, and it was the bottom of the sixth.
The Mountain Dog stands erupted in howls and cheers, Aurora leading the cheer team in an acapella rendition of the school fight song. Belle had apologized about ten times for the band being unable to attend but Anna completely understood; they had a marching competition coming up soon and needed the practice. She couldn't fault the brunette for wanting to dedicate as much time to the marching show as possible.
As the softballers trotted to the dugout, Anna called out the next three batters in the line up. The team's coach- actually, she coached any and every girls' sport at Arendelle- had a schedule conflict and couldn't attend herself. Though there was an adult to 'supervise' the team as required, she and Coach Calhoun agreed that Anna was more than capable of taking care of the nuances of gameplay.
Multifaceted she may be, Officer Brooks was first and foremost a security officer. Keeping the kids safe and supervised was in the job description; learning the rules of high school softball was not.
As Pocahontas grabbed her bat and strode to the plate, Anna focused on the next two batters in the line-up. "Okay, we're doing well, so no over-exerting yourselves! We can't afford to lose a player this close to the playoffs!"
The ping of a ball meeting metal echoed across the field and Anna turned in time to catch sight of Pocahontas rather leisurely jogging to first base as an outfielder chased down the grounded ball.
"Just like that then?" Merida laughed, taking a few practice swings with her bat, her unruly hair flaring over her shoulders from under her helmet.
"Yeah, just like that," Anna said, shaking her head as Tiana jogged over to the plate. Walking over to the bench, the redhead tossed her ball cap onto her bag and pulled her helmet out, just in case she ended up batting. She settled down on the bench and tapped Esmeralda on the shoulder. "Hey, thanks for joining the team this year. Aurora probably gave you a hard time about it."
The other girl laughed, waving it off and smiling. "We're Mountain Dogs, Anna, we run with the pack! Besides, Aurora isn't mad. I just can't talk to any of them during the game, that's all." She reached up and fiddled with her long raven locks, tightening her ponytail a little. "Trust me, it's not so bad; if I have to listen to Snow give one more lecture on proper nail polish application, I think I might choke her out myself."
Anna giggled. "Still, we really appreciate it."
"It's the least I can do after you helped track down Djali last year."
"Oh, that was nothing; I'm glad I found him before the blizzard got too bad and Kristoff helped out a lot. The boy knows his ice, let me tell you."
The two laughed as Mulan- freshly out of her catcher padding- walked over to grab a bat.
"Hey Anna, sorry I didn't reply to your text," she said, tucking the bat under her arm as she pulled on her batting gloves. "I'm sure your skills are fine but, if you'd like further instruction, I'm sure Papa and I can give you some lessons."
"I'd really appreciate it, Mulan." Anna beamed, turning slightly to face the catcher. "Could Kristoff come too? I haven't really talked to him about it yet but he might want to, I think."
Mulan laughed, settling her helmet on her head. "It's perfectly fine, Anna. Papa and I were planning on practicing tomorrow anyway. Would that work for you?"
Tomorrow was Sunday, her day off.
"Absolutely!" She could always catch up any missed sleep on Tuesday. There wasn't anything planned for then... yet. "I'll talk to Kristoff at the rodeo tonight."
"I still don't get why the cheerleaders don't go to the rodeos." Esmeralda scrunched up her nose, tilting her head to the side. "I mean, we go to every other sporting event. We'll probably go to the archery competitions whenever they start up. Why not rodeo?"
Anna nudged the raven haired girl playfully as another ping rang out. "Do you really want to stick Aurora, Snow, and Jasmine on the side of a dirt arena with horses and cattle running around?"
"Oh, right, dirt- a cheerleader's Kryptonite." The two laughed as Mulan took her turn at the plate.
"Don't say that too loud; I don't need Aurora fuming at me on Monday for sowing dissent in her ranks or whatever," Anna replied with a chuckle, glancing at the field. Pocahontas was already on third and Merida on first. Mulan- though one heck of a hitter when she was properly motivated- was definitely going to sacrifice; if she did hit, Merida would try her hardest to get the run.
Merida believed in soundly crushing her opponents by trying to evoke the mercy rule; Mulan preferred to dial back the effort and leave the score low. For Anna, it really depended on the opponent. Some teams could come back from a severe deficit- like Middleton and Berk- and more than one game in Arendelle history was lost after a comeback like that. Lowerton, on the other hand, usually struggled, especially this year. With only three innings left, it was a pretty safe bet that dialing back wouldn't come back to bite them in the ninth.
Standing up, Anna turned her attention to the rest of the team. "Listen up! No more picking your pitches; take a swing at whatever they throw. If you hit, jog, but don't force any more scores and don't injure yourselves."
Howls answered her and she sat back down with a grin just as Mulan bunted the ball between second and third. The Lemurs' pitcher made a valiant attempt at making the catch but missed, giving Pocahontas the go ahead to score the run. Rather than throw to first, the shortstop lobbed the ball to second and Merida was called out, shooting a slight glare at her teammate as she trotted back to the dugout.
"She didn't hafta do tha'." The Scot grumbled, ripping off her helmet. Before she could go much farther, Anna stepped up, putting on her serious face.
"Merida, we're up eight to nothing and it's still the sixth. We need to save our strength for the playoffs."
"It's part ah psychological warfare to crush tha enemy while ya got tha chance." Her accent was shining through even stronger as she tossed the helmet onto her bag.
Anna furrowed her brows slightly. "No one's impressed by a team that crushes an easy opponent and the Lemurs are still trying to rebuild after over half the team graduated. You want a team to crush? We play Berk in three weeks. Save your energy for them."
Merida's scowl morphed into a wide grin. Bringing up their biggest rivals was always a sure way to change the direction of any conversation. "Aye, ye got a point. The poor lasses won't know what hit 'em!"
"That's the spirit." Anna clapped the other redhead on the shoulder and returned to her seat, returning her attention to Esmeralda. "Anyway, all joking aside, there's a reason the cheerleaders don't go to the rodeos. While our horses are well behaved most of the time, the more people you have in a localized area who don't deal with livestock on a regular basis, the higher the chance for injuries. That's why the pep squad goes but the mascot uniform is left in the locker and they don't get as animated; bulls and bucs are dangerous enough without more people inciting them from the stands."
Esmeralda shook her head, smiling. "I don't know how you do it."
"Do what?" Anna furrowed her brow, pouting slightly as the other girl laughed.
"Just... be you." Esmeralda looked at her, still shaking her head slightly. "You just... get people, like you have this... hidden stethoscope pressed tight on the pulse of the school and every student in it. I think I've seen you stop more fights than a hockey ref!"
Anna rolled her eyes, waving off the compliment. "Nah, I'm just a people person and I like to keep everything running smoothly for everyone." She shrugged. "Helping people; it's what I do."
"If you say so."
"Andersen!" Officer- er, Coach, for the time being anyway, Brooks barked out from her post just outside the dugout. "Warm up."
"Oops! Sorry Coach!" Anna scrambled to pull her gloves on, selecting a bat at random from the rack. She wasn't trying to hit so it really didn't matter but she took a few practice swings anyway while Brooks stepped closer to her.
"Please don't leave me alone with them for too long." Wearing one of the Staff polos- blue with white trim and the Arendelle logo on her breast and back- instead of her usual fitted black suit always made Officer Brooks uneasy. "I like my job too much to get into it with DunBroch again."
Although everyone pretty much pretended it hadn't happen, no one would ever forget the Scot's first day at Arendelle and her 'misunderstanding' with the school's security officer. It was still a bit of a sore spot with the officer moreso than Merida for reasons... better left unsaid.
"I'll be back before you can blink." Anna assured her, ready to stride towards the on-deck circle as one of the freshman readied herself for her last swing. She was already two strikes down.
Mulan was still on first and they had one out, another pending the girl at bat; all Anna had to do was strike out and the inning would be over. Just swing at whatever was thrown, not too much effort in any swing, and that would be the inning. Too easy.
She was snapped from her musings by the pinging of metal, eyes honing in on the ball that went sailing into center field.
"Are ye frickin' serious!"
"Can it, DunBroch! Keep! Your! Seat!"
Anna's jaw popped open as the ball suddenly dropped off, falling to the field halfway between second plate and the center fielder. However, none of the Lemurs were rushing to pick the ball up. Mulan started jogging towards second while the freshman- Violet? Right, Violet- went for first, throwing Anna an apologetic wince.
"Well, we tried." Anna muttered, nodding at both of the runners as they rounded the bases. The Lemurs had given up, prefering the state's mercy rule rather than playing the full game. Mulan hit home and gave Anna a small shrug before heading into the dugout. Violet, on the other hand, hit home and nearly stopped, averting her eyes as she approached the redhead. "Hey, Violet."
The girl's eyes snapped to Anna's as she gulped.
The redhead instantly felt a little bad; she didn't mean to scare the girl. "That was a good hit."
"But you said-"
"Hey, it happens, it's no big deal. Seriously." Anna smiled. "Don't sweat it."
Violet nodded and went to the dugout where the other girls quietly congratulated her.
The umpire removed his mask and called over both coaches and team captains, prompting Anna to start towards home. She recognized the Lowerton coach, a portly man with a Lemur polo, and the team captain, the team's designated hitter from last year. Officer Brooks was on her way over after a few shouted warnings at Merida.
"What'd'ya say?" The umpire looked between the coaches. "Technically speaking, we're supposed to wait until the end of the seventh, but do ya wanna call it now?"
"Discretion is the better part of valor," The Lemur coach said with a wry grin, turning to the team captain.
The girl chuckled and shook her head. "She's just going to shut us out again. Let's just bow out now."
Anna offered a small smile. "There's always next time."
The Lemur captain put her hands up in surrender. "Come on, let's be real about this. No one's bringin' the heat on the Mountain Dogs this year."
"This okay with you, Coach?" The umpire looked at Officer Brooks.
After a slight nod from Anna, Brooks replied with a firm nod of her own, shaking the Lemur coach's hand.
As they returned to their respective dugouts, Anna called the team together to shake hands with their opponents, the Mountain Dog fans howling and cheering as the game was officially brought to a close. When Merida made to pass her, Anna grabbed her arm. "Merida-"
The other redhead laughed, slinging an arm around Anna's shoulders. "Oh, I know, Anna. Play nice an' don't rub it in too harsh." Her face twisted up slightly. "Wish I'da been on tha field though. But at least I hit! Why do we always put ye so low on tha battin' order anyway?"
"So she can swoop in to save the day, that's why," Esmeralda said, not bothering to contain her laugh at Anna's furious blush. She was a pretty good pitcher, yes, but not so great on the hitting front. "Oh come on, Supergirl, you know I'm just teasing!"
As Pocohantas passed, she nudged Merida and nodded towards the Lemurs players. "I think they're just as ready to get out of here as we are."
"She said it." One of the Lemurs laughed, another nodding along. "We still have to drive back to Lowerton!"
"You wanna make it up to us, though," the other Lemur said. "Just beat the stuffing out of Middleton next week. Throw a no-hitter against them, and we'll be even. Until October, anyway."
Everyone in earshot laughed. Middleton was pretty stiff competition and consistent from year-to-year, so throwing a no-hitter was a pretty tall order. Then again, the rivalry between Middleton and Lowerton was based on proximity, seeing as the two school zones and cities bordered each other; the rivalry between Middleton and Arendelle was purely based on school history and records.
If Anna was going to pitch a no-hitter against any team, though, she'd choose Berk every time. Shutting out the Guardians in any sport was a heavily celebrated event in school and in town.
"I'll see what I can do." Anna offered, prompting another round of laughter before the teams parted ways. As the Mountain Dog softballers began collecting their belongings, Anna called out reminders about practice the following week, stopping only when she heard the telltale ringtone from her communication device.
She pointedly ignored how badly she hoped the call included a specific individual.
"Hey Mr. Oaken! Where are we going this time?" Anna answered with a grin.
"Anna! Good to see you. Ve have request from Vashington."
"Washington state or Washington D.C.?" She really hoped it was Washington state. No offense to the guy, but she really didn't feel like dealing with the President so soon after the Paris incident.
"State, ya." Oh thank goodness. "Very bad landslide is big problem. No one hurt yet but is very fishy. The local fire department and rangers are asking for your help."
Anna nodded, masking her slight disappointment; the park rangers were very nice to her after she helped them rescue a bear that was trapped during a forest fire. Apparently, the park ranger had raised the bear before releasing him into the wild but the two rarely went long without checking in on each other. The bear was almost as grateful as the ranger.
"Ride?"
"Already on the vay, ya, they pick up Kristoff first. You still at softball game?"
"We just finished. Lucky timing, I guess." Anna shrugged, picking up her bag and trotting out of the dugout. "I'll go change into my mission clothes. Can you let them know we'll be there as soon as we can?"
Mr. Oaken nodded before the screen went blank and the device was returned to her pocket.
Anna called out a final reminder to the softball team, receiving a chorus of 'good luck's and 'stay safe's as well as one particularly emphatic 'get on with ye' before turning her attention to the gymnasium. She had no clue when Oaken's ride would arrive so she couldn't waste any time!
Kristoff grit his teeth, guiding Sven as best he could on the rocky terrain. Years of walking and running on ice barely lent experience to maneuvering on barely solidified mud so the rocky outcropping was a blessing, but it was only a matter of time before the swell of mud and debris overwhelmed their position. Sven was handling it like a champ though, keeping his attention on picking where every hoof struck on the rock and jumping over rolling mud.
Really, it wasn't for Sven's or his own sake that he was so very, very concerned about the shoddy footing. Anna was further into the unstable ground, using what amounted to a trash can lid to surf the swirling, debris ridden mud flow. There was a rope connecting them, one end secured to Sven's saddle while the other was wrapped tightly around Anna's waist as a life line, but Kristoff was still nervous. It was barely long enough to reach their desired target- the remnants of a two story house's roof with two stranded kids huddled on top, clinging to each other in terror.
"Easy, Sven," Kristoff said, eyes glued to his friend as she swung her weight to pull the rope taut, almost parallel with Sven as he took the firmer ground. As they neared where the disconnected roof was being pushed by the landslide, Kristoff leaned back hard, bringing Sven to a stop. With Sven and Kristoff acting as the fulcrum, Anna swung like a pendulum towards the stranded kids, riding her impromptu transport onto the decimated shingles of the roof and coaxing the children towards her.
All she knew was their mother was at work and their father had left the house to run to the store when the third landslide hit; he was completely inconsolable as the rangers and rescue workers desperately tried to evacuate the surrounding areas. He could barely articulate his own name, much less the names of his children.
The smaller child latched onto Anna's leg readily, looking for anything solid as the earth beneath them shifted and buckled, but her big brother was paralyzed by fear.
"It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you," Anna said, as gently as she could while yelling over the shifting mud and helicopters in the distance. "I'm just trying to get you back to your father."
That seemed to get him moving, the boy attaching himself on Anna's other side, arms wrapped firmly around her waist. She would have to be a bit more careful about how she shifted her weight but she could manage. Piece of cake.
Anna was about to give Kristoff the signal to start pulling them in when she heard the barking close by, turning her head in time to see a dog break through the mud as it desperately tried to keep above the rolling torrent surrounding it.
"Anna, come on, think about this." The blond atop the reindeer muttered. From where he sat, Kristoff felt his heart tug in two directions: yes, he wanted to save the dog because he loved animals and this one was fighting and he always tried to help animals who were fighting to survive... but he'd rather Anna not try and push her luck on a trash can lid in seriously unstable terrain.
It was no contest though; of course Anna would angle her makeshift mud surfboard towards where the dog was, bending down and pulling him free while keeping a firm hold on the smaller child. Of course, it couldn't be something small, like a Chihuahua, no, it just had to be a Bulldog.
"Back, Sven, back!" Kristoff roared, grabbing his end of the rope and pulling. There was far too much weight on that lid for it to stay topside for long if Anna lost momentum. She was doing the best she could to swerve left and right, keeping the 'front' of the lid angled so they stayed above the rushing mud, but that would only last for so long if Sven and Kristoff couldn't bring them to mostly solid ground.
Just as Anna and her cargo were about to reach the tip of the rocky outcropping Sven and Kristoff were on, a stray... something- what, was that part of a windmill or did people leave twenty foot long jigsaw blades just lying around in Washington state?- broke from beneath the shifting surface and arc up, ready to fall on Anna's life line.
Kristoff caught the motion of the redhead's arm just as the whatever-it-was began to fall. "Sven! Watch Anna!"
The reindeer snapped his gaze to his master's best friend- legs braced for the moment the tension was lost- and caught the overhead motion of throwing a lasso. The moment he felt the tension disappear from the rope attached to his saddle, another rope- Anna's rodeo rope- sailed towards them, the loop wide.
Lunging forward- and nearly throwing Kristoff in the process- Sven closed the distance between him and the lasso, lowering his head and allowing his antlers to give him the added reach. He almost regretted it the moment the rope went taut, braying in pain as the tension threatened to snap his antler clean off. But he dropped his hind quarters regardless, anchoring himself as best he could and pulling back, trying to bring Anna close.
"Hang on, buddy!" Kristoff shouted, dismounting the moment Sven had his legs under him- their combined weight was a pretty solid anchor even in unstable footing- and grabbing the rope, leaning back with every fiber of his being with Sven, rider and mount frantically fighting to pull their friend and her cargo to safety.
Plastic scrapped against rock as Anna and company reached the lowest point of the outcropping, the redhead quickly ushering the children further onto the solid ground. The breaking and cracking of wood drew her attention over one shoulder, where she could see the roof the children had ridden splinter and buckle as it hit another rocky outcropping, bursting into fragments before her very eyes.
Pressing a hand against the boy's back while Kristoff rushed to pick up the girl, the group moved further up until they heard the telltale whirl of helicopter blades above them. The rescue chopper had arrived and already a worker was being lowered with two harnesses attached to him.
Sven did his best to shield them from the battering wind generated from the chopper blades until the worker touched down. Anna helped the little girl into the harness while Kristoff attended to the boy, the rescue worker wrapping a protective arm around each child.
The Bulldog, shaking like a leaf on the ground beside them, watched the scene unfold with wide eyes. Kristoff gingerly picked the dog up and set him between the siblings.
"You hold here and you here!" He positioned the girl's arms around the dog's rear legs while the boy held the upper body.
"Lived here twenty years and I've never seen anything like this!" The worker told Anna, shaking his head. "Entire neighborhoods, gone!"
"You, stay!" Kristoff tapped the dog's nose once. "As long as you hold tight, you'll all be fine, okay?" Three sets of eyes were on him and he smiled. "I promise, you'll be fine. Hold tight!"
Anna and Kristoff stepped back, crouching low and turning away as the rescue worker, children, and dog were hauled up. It was a lot of weight to pull at once but it was a risk worth taking, given the dull rumble of yet more land sliding somewhere in the distance.
Once the chopper was heading back towards safer ground, Anna turned to Kristoff. "There's no way this is natural!"
The blond was already hoisting himself onto Sven. "Come on! Let's figure out what's causing this!"
Anna rubbed Sven's muzzle as she passed. "Thanks for the save there, Sven! Good boy!" He licked her cheek, prompting a giggle from the redhead. Kristoff considered questioning whether it was appropriate but decided against it as the redhead climbed on behind him.
"Alright, let's do this!"
The trio took off once more, with Kristoff and Sven watching the way ahead while Anna kept her eyes peeled for any signs of distress.
Rapunzel bit her lip and glanced at her watch. The opening announcement was set to begin at any moment but no one had seen Anna since the early end of the softball game. Mulan and Merida already confirmed she'd been called for a mission, and the trio did occasionally cut it close because of that, but usually Kristoff or Anna would've called someone by now to let them know the King and Princess wouldn't make it, or when they expected to arrive.
Adjusting her hat for something to do, Rapunzel scanned the arena stands, looking for any sign of her friends. She saw plenty of cowboy hats of every size, color, and material- seriously, who wears felt to a rodeo?- and western wear, most corresponding to school colors of the various competitors. Not everyone was required to wear the standard long sleeve button ups, jeans, and boots- it was a rule for the actual competitors but spectators were free to wear what they wished- but every Arendelle supporter was wearing the same outfit with little variation. To the common passer-by, lacking an embroidered name and pins along the collar might not even be noticed.
Still, each student competitor was allowed to wear a tasteful- if unique- cowboy hat and Anna's stood out pretty well on its own, white with the Arendelle logo hand painted by Rapunzel herself, though it was partially obscured by the tiara she wore due to her title. It was nowhere in sight, though, and neither was Kristoff's matching black hat.
As Mulan reclaimed her seat, passing the blonde a paper bowl of nachos, Rapunzel opened her mouth to speak.
The other girl beat her to it. "I just checked; no one's seen them."
With a groan, Rapunzel resigned herself to eating the nachos and waiting. She'd already attended to Maximus, ensuring his tack was set just the way he- and Anna- liked it, even going so far as helping Merida cinch Kristoff's saddle onto Angus. That way, even if they arrived at the last minute, they could both hop into the saddles and make it for the opening ceremony.
"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Rapunzel and Mulan exchanged winces. Too late. "Welcome to this week's Colorado State High School Rodeo, hosted by the Arendelle High Mountain Dogs."
"I really hope someone picked up the slack if they haven't made it." Mulan mumbled, popping another chip into her mouth. Rapunzel nodded, watching the entry way beneath the announcer's booth for any sign of the two.
"We ask that everyone rise as we present the representatives of today's competitors, their school flags, the Colorado state flag, and the flag of the United States of America."
Setting aside their snacks, Mulan and Rapunzel rose, sparing a glance as Merida jumped into the stands and stood next to Rapunzel, shaking her head at their questioning glances. Each team was called forth, the King and Queen riding in side-by-side, one holding the school flag proudly, making a lap around the arena before coming to a halt in a somewhat jagged line cutting through the center. As usual, each team took the outer most open spot, leaving the center of the arena open for the host team.
"And finally our hosts for this evening, please welcome Prince of the Arendelle Rodeo Team, Shang Li, holding the Arendelle High Mountain Dog flag." Shang charged forth on his white dappled horse as his introduction finished and Rapunzel instantly shifted into pep squad mode, leading the howl with Peter- who volunteered for clown duty this week and was down in the arena for it- as Shang made his round and took his place. "The Princess of the Arendelle Rodeo Team, Anna Andersen, holding the Colorado state flag."
The three girls held their breath for a moment before releasing a sigh of relief as Maximus, with a smiling Anna sitting in the saddle, cantered into the arena, their heads held high. Sure, Anna's face and hands were covered in... what looked to be telltale signs of being too close to an explosion or two... but she was there, in one piece, and well enough to ride. She even waved to the stands, guiding Maximus with her knees as she took her lap around the arena to the cheers and howls of her classmates.
They could pester her for details later.
"And finally, please welcome the King of the Arendelle High Rodeo Team, Kristoff Bjorgman, and the Queen of the Arendelle High Rodeo Team, Jessie Pride, escorting the American flag!"
A moment later and the two leaders of the rodeo team entered the arena, Sven and Bullseye in perfect step as they carried their riders proudly. Kristoff looked no worse for wear than Anna, though he made less of an effort to smile about it, his left hand firmly holding the flag's staff a few inches below Jessie's right. The ginger was far more enthusiastic as the pair made their trip around the arena. As they reached the last spot, bringing them squarely in the center of the rodeo royalty line and the arena, Kristoff released the flagstaff.
"Now, please remain standing for the singing of our national anthem." The students holding their school flag pulled the bottom of the staffs free of the holster, allowing them to tuck the wood under their arms, parallel to the dirt floor of the arena, the cloth swaying slightly in the evening breeze, while Anna canted the state flag forward so only the American flag remained at full height.
Everyone except the flag bearers removed their hats, placing them over their hearts in preparation as the PA system clicked and crackled, switching from the microphone to a recording.
Jessie leaned to her left slightly, whispering through the side of her mouth. "Cuttin' a little close, don'tcha think?"
Anna gave a nervous chuckle, her grip tightening on the staff. "Sorry."
The ginger had to fight to keep from laughing out loud. "Glad yew could make it, Supergirl."
Maximus shifted, flicking an ear back as if to agree with Jessie momentarily, before resuming his rigid stance beneath Anna as the first notes of the national anthem began ringing through the crisp evening air. Anna's voice raised with everyone's as the anthem played, joining her classmates and competition alike. It sometimes struck her how incredible her classmates sounded when they sang; no matter where they were or who was present, when the Mountain Dogs started singing, it was like a professional choir, each voice contributing to the whole, and it was overpowering.
Maybe that's why they rocked every choir competition in the nation every year.
The lights were still on in the living room, which made Anna happy and sad at the same time. Happy: her parents waited up for her! Sad: it was almost two in the morning and they waited up for her! Trudging up the front steps, Anna opened the door carefully and smiled as she saw both of her parents knocked out on the couch.
Her father was a business man, running his own company from a building downtown, while her mother worked at the local hospital, a doctor of general medicine who seemed to have tabs on the current health of everyone in town. There were probably more specifics to their jobs but they never talked about work around Anna, except for the passing comment, often with the excuse that she needed to embrace being free of responsibilities while she was young so they wouldn't break her spirit as she got older.
When she was younger, Anna thought it was code for: we're part of a top secret government agency and we're protecting you by being vague and mysterious. Nowadays, she could understand not wanting to burden a child with things she couldn't understand; it was hard enough explaining to her parents what she did on a daily basis without getting too many questions in return.
Closing the door slightly louder than she needed to, Anna walked into the living room as her parents startled awake, stretching and yawning. They turned tired but shining eyes on their only daughter, taking in her haggard appearance with bemused smiles.
"Rough day?" Her father, Kai Andersen, nodded towards the 'bum' chair, a beaten and stained piece of furniture than was Anna's or Kristoff's seat, depending on who was less willing to stand or less dirty while the other took a shower.
"You have no idea," Anna said with a laugh, plopping down and relaxing for the first time all day.
"How'd the game go?" Her mother, Gerda, snuggled up against her husband while the two waited for the floodgates to open, so to speak.
They didn't wait long.
"Okay, so, this morning, right, we were playing the Lowerton Lemurs, and you know how their team mostly graduated last year, so we knew this was going to be a pretty easy sweep..." Anna just talked. She was pretty sure if one were to actually write out the words spilling from her mouth, the entire explanation of her day would be one giant run-on sentence that never stopped. Her parents didn't interrupt her, though their eyebrows raised slightly at 'landslides in Washington', 'mad scientist', and 'completely bent on bringing back the Titans of Greek mythology', though her mother obviously had a tough time containing her laughter when Anna re-enacted the flying kick that brought the villain down, complete with sound effects. By the time she reached parachuting to make it in time for the rodeo, the redhead was a little out of breath. "... oh, but, you should've heard the national anthem, seriously, I don't think any school is the world could claim to be half as musically inclined as Arendelle, we're just totally on it when it comes to harmonies, but that's every opening ceremony, and when it was over..." She continued, up through her runs and all the way to the present. "... so, yeah, then I saw you guys were still up and sat down, and now... here we are!"
Her parents laughed fondly, Kai sitting up slightly. "Well, I'm glad the softball game and the rodeo went well. Now, about this Washington business-"
"Daaaaad." Anna groused, removing her hat to run a hand over her hair, wincing at the mud that met her. Shower was definitely a priority tonight.
"Anna," he said carefully, waiting until she looked at him before continuing. "As your father, I couldn't be prouder of the things you've accomplished." His face and tone became a touch more serious. "I just want you to know we worry about you. We didn't know you went to Washington today."
The teen winced again. "My bad, Dad. I just-"
"Got caught up, we know, Sweetheart." Her mother got off the couch to cross the room, pulling her very tired and very dirty little girl into a warm hug. "We just worry sometimes. You said you were going to come home for a nap and you didn't."
Hugging her mother back and wrapping an arm around her father when he joined in, Anna sighed. She couldn't really blame them for worrying though; she occasionally forgot to tell her parents where she was going or how long she'd be gone. After the first few times, they stopped calling the sheriff, but they still worried regardless. "I'm sorry. I'll make sure to call next time."
"You said that last time," her father said, a yawn drawing out the last word. Patting her shoulder, he guided all of them towards the stairs. "We just want you to know Anna, we worry and we love you."
"Love you too," Anna replied, releasing her parents and heading upstairs to grab a quick shower before bed.
Kristoff and Sven let out twin sighs of relief as home sweet home came into view. It was after days like this that Kristoff really hated living in the 'valley' rather than the town. He lived furthest from the town proper and the school, seeing as the city limit was the furthest fence on the Bjorgman property, and most of the time he didn't mind the privacy until he realized how long it would take him to get home from any event held in town.
"Come on, boy, we're almost there." Kristoff tried lifting his feet a little higher, actually stepping instead of dragging himself closer to home. The reindeer was weary himself, tongue lolling out of his mouth as his head hung low. They were the very picture of exhausted.
Upon reaching the door, Kristoff leaned against the sturdy oak for a moment before turning the knob, thankful it was unlocked; he couldn't even begin to imagine where he'd put his key.
Stumbling through the threshold, Kristoff's eyes went straight for the stairs, Sven trailing behind him and just as eager to go bed. He could always shower in the morning. Sleep; he wanted it now, he needed it now, and it was so close!
Then he heard the collective gasp.
"KRISTOFF'S HOME!"
"No no no no no no!" The blond tried valiantly to scrambling to the stairs but didn't make it halfway before he was bombarded by more bodies than he knew what to do with, bringing him to the ground in a pile of Bjorgman family fun he could've really done without at that moment.
Finally, after his cousins were finished hugging him, his mother drug him to his feet, inspecting her son with a critical eye. "Both eyes, eight fingers, two thumbs, two arms, two legs, all your teeth, looks like you made it back in one piece!"
"Mom, please, can we just not? Please?" Kristoff groaned as his mother, Bulda, continued poking and prodding him.
"Now, Kristoff," she said, drawing far enough away to give him that motherly glare, hands on her hips and brown hair a mess around her shoulders. "We've agreed; you can go off on adventures but when you come back into this house, you take your family's loving concern like a man."
"Yes, Ma'am," he replied, passing a hand over his face as Sven snorted playfully at his cousins, who were busy hugging their reindeer's legs. "I'm fine, Mom, really."
"How'd the rodeo go?"
"It went fine. We barely made it in time. We have a strong team this year though." Kristoff couldn't help the smile as his chest swelled with pride. He wasn't like Anna; he wasn't all about school spirit or any of that, but there was a satisfaction to being at the head of a team and watching them do well. "We made those riders from Berk look like a bunch of city punks!"
"Kristoff!" The boy turned, eyes falling on his grandfather who was carefully teetering towards him with the help of his cane. The older man smiled, eyes twinkling as he nodded. "Remember that conflict is the spice of life, not the body of it. Soak in the camaraderie you share but not at the expense of alienation."
"Yes, Grandpabbie," Kristoff replied, inclining his head slightly in respect to the family patriarch.
"Good... now that Kristoff is home, let's all get some rest. We can hear all about your mission tomorrow." Grandpabbie nodded to himself, turning towards his room on the ground floor while the younger generations started their stampede upstairs.
Kristoff groaned, earning the attention of his mother. "That reminds me." He sighed, looking at the matriarch. "Anna wants me to go to town with her tomorrow to get fighting lessons from Mulan and Mr. Fa. Is that okay?"
"Of course!" Bulda replied, patting her son on the back hard enough to nearly send him to the floor. "Remind her to stop by some time this week, won't you? I haven't seen her in ages!"
"She was just here Wednesday."
"Ages!"
Kristoff ran a hand over his face and started towards the stairs. He was too tired to deal with his hyperactive relatives.
Author's Note: Sorry for the short chapter, y'all, but I wanted to split up Anna's Saturday and Sunday to give an idea of what sorts of insanity this kid puts up with on a day-to-day basis. Next chapter will be Sunday, then we'll switch to see how our favorite villains are spending their off time, and back to the action. Sorry if the start seems a little slow but it serves a purpose, I promise. We're almost done setting up this universe. Almost.