The calm

Anna and Elsa continued studying in the evenings. Their daily study session had become a habit faster than both girls imagined. Anna even found the time useful to complete some of her homework whenever Elsa had to complete activities on her own. She was always ready to help the older girl if needed, but Anna believed it was important to teach Elsa to be independent and not to rely too much on her. It was going to help her in the long run.

Anna quickly noticed Elsa had a natural talent for math - geometry to be specific. She struggled with some things but she was more eager to learn it than language or history. She claimed math seemed more useful to find a job than history did, but still she followed Anna's curriculum without complaint. Her little patience to failure got in the way sometimes, but Anna had found the way to convince her that mistakes were part of the learning process. She was willing to learn and improve in every aspect - or almost every aspect - calligraphy had proven to be one of the main things Elsa was not willing to practice. And that led to the conversation they were having that evening.

"Elsa, I've told you, please, try to write more slowly. I can't understand a thing," said Anna after trying in vain to read Elsa's homework from the previous language class. "You need to practice your handwriting. I'll bring more calligraphy activities for you to complete."

"What? No," said Elsa letting out a sigh. They had had similar conversation in the past weeks and every time Elsa made everything in her power not to complete those activities. "Can't I just keep writing like this. It's not that bad," she picked the paper sheet Anna was reading and checked what she had written to prove her point. "See, it's not that bad," pointing to the different letters she made an effort to let Anna understand her handwriting, "this is an 'n' and this is an 'h' and-."

"No," she said shaking her head. "I'm sorry, but it needs to be clear. If you take a test you won't be able to explain to the person who evaluates you your handwriting. If they don't understand they won't be able to assess your work. It's part of your education."

Letting a tired sigh escape her lips, Elsa rested her chin in her right hand and looked at the piece of paper in front of her. "I know it's part of my education, Gerda insisted I practiced too when she taught me."

"A wise woman," said Anna and laughed when she saw Elsa's unamused expression. "Why are you so adamant to practice? You are willing to do and learn more complicated things."

Elsa thought her answer for a few seconds before asking, "do you promise not to laugh?"

"I would never," she smiled reassuringly.

"After I met Kristoff in the orphanage and he realised I didn't left my room much, he lent me his books to look at," Elsa felt it was fair to open up about some things of her past to Anna, after all the girl was taking the trouble to teach her, but it didn't mean she wasn't ashamed of it. "Even though I didn't know how to read, he thought lending me his books could help me. For the longest time all I did was looking at the pictures..."

Anna felt pity for the little Elsa in the orphanage, trying her best to understand the words and being content just looking at the pictures instead. She chose not to say anything and let her talk. It was not usual for Elsa to start talking about her time in the orphanage and she believed letting her talk was going to be cathartic. So, she waited for Elsa to gather her thoughts and continue.

Grabbing her pencil from the table, she began scribbling on the margins of her notebook. Doing something helped her talk since she wasn't looking at Anna in the eyes. "I imagined what the story was about with the help of the pictures, and tried to find something in the words that could help me understand how reading and writing worked. After some time, Kristoff got me some paper and a pencil, he thought that if I copied what I saw I was going to learn. He said that's what he did at school." Elsa chuckled at the memory, thinking about a young Kristoff showing up in her room with his idea.

Anna giggled at the idea too, it was too sweet to imagine an eager little Kristoff proposing that idea. Anna was glad Elsa was mentioning some things about Kristoff in her story. Just like Elsa, Kristoff didn't talk much about his past. He was willing to answer questions if she asked, but she had noticed he never told her stories about his youth. So, she was happy she could learn a bit more about him too.

With a smile plastered on her face, Elsa continued, "Anyway, after Kristoff got me the materials, I thought it could be interesting to draw what I saw in one of the books. It was my favourite because it had all these beautiful drawings." Elsa's smile turned a bit sad, clearly the memories of the book where something she treasured, but her grown-up mind understood how wrong it was for a child to try to 'learn' the way she had. "At first I just copied the drawings, but after a while I decided to give Kristoff's idea a chance. Maybe if I was able to copy the words I saw, I was going to learn to read and write. And that's what I did."

"You copied every word in the book?" Anna was amazed. She was not sure how old Elsa was at the time, but it was impressive she was so committed to learn.

"I didn't know the letters. I was not sure how words worked so, for me, those words were just weird scribbles. I'm not sure you could say I copied every word. It took me a really long time but I did copy what I saw in the book."

As she explained, Elsa kept her focus on her notebook. Anna noticed she was probably remembering those days copying word after word, and trying to hide her shame.

"I spent months copying something that I couldn't read. And obviously, I didn't learn how to read by the time I finished," a nervous laugh escaped her lips.

Anna saw Elsa laugh at herself and suddenly felt angry at Elsa for mocking her young self; as if it had been her fault she didn't know better. Anna wanted to voice the way she feel, she wanted to tell her it was not her fault. It was not normal for a little girl to try to learn on her own. But she didn't, she didn't want to make Elsa feel uncomfortable. Especially now that she was finally talking about her childhood.

"I kept the handwritten copy of the book with me for years and I traced the words over and over again, especially after Kristoff left. It was all I had to keep myself entertained," she looked away and rubbed her eye with her hand.

The action didn't go unnoticed by Anna, but she didn't make a comment. She felt she needed to offer Elsa some kind of comfort. But what was there to say. She had been born into a perfect family. She had always had loving parents ready to help her with anything she needed. She had gone to school like any other kid. She had always had friends. She had never felt lonely. Sure, maybe she had craved company here and there, but she had never experienced solitude. Anna felt her own eyes moisture but made an effort not to show it.

"When Gerda taught me how to read and write, what I had copied and traced was ingrained in my brain. I never got used to hold the pencil nor draw the letters the right way. And the idea of practicing didn't sound appealing at all," she took a deep breath before looking at Anna for the first time since she began her story. "It still doesn't. It just feel as if I'm about to do what I did with that book all over again."

Anna put her hand over Elsa's, she was surprised to feel it so cold and to see Elsa tense at the contact. Both things combined almost made her let go of it, but she hold it instead and said, "I think I understand your reasons. Thank you for telling me."

Elsa's mouth turned into a hopeful smile and asked, "does it mean I don't have to do it?"

Not expecting that answer Anna couldn't stop herself from chuckling, "I'm sorry. There's no other way. You'll need to practice."

Elsa laughed too before saying, "it was worth the shot."

They both laughed again but Anna felt she needed to let Elsa know it was not right to feel ashamed of what she had done, "you should be proud of copying that book, Elsa. I think it's an incredible achievement for a little girl."

She thought about it for a while, "but it wasn't a real achievement. All I did was copy symbols and trace them over and over again. That's not learning."

"Well, it taught you discipline. Not every kid is capable of doing something like that. Don't be ashamed of it, Elsa." Letting go of Elsa's hand, she straightened her back on the chair and used her 'teacher' voice, "sadly, you'll need to practice and improve your handwriting."

Elsa knew Anna's insistence was for her own good, and accepted, "I know."

After that, Elsa kept working on her assignments unaware of Anna's inner turmoil. Once the conversation was over and she had given Elsa more things to work on, she had had enough time to think about Elsa's story. She knew Elsa hadn't moved into Kristoff's orphanage until she was eight years old, so that meant it was the previous institution who had denied the girl the chance to go to school first. She felt the need to know what had triggered that decision, but she knew she needed to be careful. Elsa had opened up earlier, but that didn't mean she had the right to rummage through her past.

By the time Elsa finished her work, Anna realised they had a few minutes before Kristoff came back from his parents' house. She knew that, with Kristoff presence, she was not going to be able to ask Elsa any questions; he was always fast to tell her not to ask any questions. And she also knew that given Elsa's previous story, she had the perfect chance to ask her about her education - or lack of it. So, she took her chance when both of them had put their things away and she was pouring themselves some tea.

"Elsa?" she asked from the kitchen counter.

"Yeah?"

"I've meant to ask you something, but I'm not sure if you'd feel comfortable talking about it. Do you mind if I do?" She picked the mugs and sat down on the sofa next to Elsa.

Elsa accepted the mug she offered before saying, "Umm, sure. I guess. What do you want to know?"

"You told me about the way you tried to learn on your own, and how Kristoff tried to help. But, wasn't the orphanage responsible for your education?"

She hesitated for a few seconds, it was hard to explain to Anna why one child was denied education while the others had the chance to study without saying anything about her powers. "The orphanage I was in was a terrible place. They didn't care about the kids. A disgusting man was in charge of it and he couldn't care less if we were getting education." She shivered at the memories of that place. Just thinking about that man made her powers stir under her skin. She needed to be careful and keep the conversation safe. Deep down she wanted to tell Anna about her life, about her past. Since the beginning she had felt a connection with the girl that she had only felt with Kristoff before. But the more time she spent with Anna, the more she felt apprehensive about revealing her powers to her. She didn't want to lose her friend and she didn't want to cause Kristoff any trouble.

"But what about Kristoff? He went to school."

"I was in another orphanage, in another town. That's the place I'm talking about."

"Oh I see…" she realised her assumptions were correct. It was the first institution the one to deny Elsa a chance to study. But there was still something that didn't make sense, "but what happened when you joined the new one here? They just didn't send to school?"

Elsa nodded but she made an effort to explain her situation, "they didn't know what to do with me. I'd always been treated differently because-" Elsa stopped in her tracks when she realised what she was about to say. She quickly decided to say a half-truth so Anna didn't notice, "I was afraid of everything. Even leaving my room."

"You didn't leave your room?"

"The only reason Kristoff and I met was because he tried his best to meet whoever was behind the door." She still remembered how scared she'd been the day Kristoff got into the room.

Anna guessed Elsa had her reasons to be afraid, she'd said the other institution was terrible, but still. "Okay, I understand you were a frightened child, but shouldn't they have tried? I mean it was the best for you and-"

To Elsa's dismay, Anna kept wondering about the reasons behind her lack of education. She couldn't blame the girl, after all she was studying to help people learn and in Anna's mind what had happened to her as a child was unacceptable."They really didn't know what to do with me. They knew I was not their responsibility, they were just keeping me there for a while. I think they never really cared."

"Not their responsibility? You were a minor living there!"

Sighing Elsa tried to drop the topic. She wanted to answer Anna's questions, but she was not ready to answer everything she wanted to know. "Look, it's complicated. I just lived there temporarily. They just pretended I didn't exist for a couple of years. Then I returned to my first orphanage. It was not a big deal."

Every time Elsa dismissed the problem Anna got a little angrier with her. She was not exactly angry with Elsa, after all it was not the girl's fault. But she couldn't stop herself from raising her voice, "Not a big deal, Elsa? They pretended a kid didn't exist! How can you be okay with it?"

"It doesn't mean I'm okay with it now!" Elsa's emotions spiked and her powers asked for release under her skin. She knew that if she didn't drop the subject soon, she was going to need to go outside to release some tension. That was the main reason she hated talking about her past. Half the time her powers wanted to manifest how she was feeling and concealing them was almost imposible. "I know it sound weird but at the time it was the best for me- I- I don't really feel comfortable discussing this." She stood up with a little difficulty and crutched towards the bathroom.

"Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?"

Just before closing the bathroom door she said, "Thank you, Anna. I appreciate your concern. The important thing is I'm finally doing something to change my past."

"Yes, you are right," she muttered. Anna knew Elsa's sudden disappearance had more to do with the conversation than actually needing to go to the bathroom. She felt bad for forcing Elsa to talk about sensitive topics but she needed more information about that place. If the institution was still working there were many kids who could suffer just like Elsa had. However, for Elsa's sake, she was going to stop asking questions about that place. At least for the time being.


On Saturday morning Anna decided to pay Elsa a visit. She had arranged to spend the rest of the day with Kristoff and she felt it was a good idea to spend time with Elsa while she waited for Kristoff to get out of work.

When she got to his apartment, she was surprised to see Gerda opening the door. She hadn't thought of the possibility of her mother-in-law spending time with Elsa, and she felt ashamed not to have called before showing up.

"I'm sorry I came unannounced. I didn't know you were here, Gerda."

"Nonsense, dear. The more the merrier. Come in!"

She greeted Elsa and was surprised to see her focused on a jigsaw puzzle. She hadn't imagined Elsa like the type of person who enjoyed doing puzzles but, if she thought about it, it made sense. She was quiet and liked spending time on her own. However, more than once she had mentioned she needed to keep herself busy with something, and puzzles were a good option if she couldn't move.

Anna soon joined mother and daughter in their activity. She hadn't had the chance to see Gerda and Elsa spend time with each other before, except in the few family dinners Elsa had joined during the year. Anna realised that just like with Kristoff, Elsa's relationship with Gerda was incredible. Anyone could believe Elsa was Gerda's biological daughter. Elsa joked around and made remarks just to get into Gerda's nerves, while the older woman just laughed. They had a similar sense of humour and it was contagious.

"Why did you decide to become a teacher, Anna?" asked Gerda after the conversation had changed towards Elsa's learning sessions.

"I don't know," it was the first time someone asked her that, so it took Anna some seconds to think of an answer. "I guess I always liked the idea of helping others learn. I was all the time helping my classmates in high school."

"I think you're a really good teacher," said Elsa.

"You do?" she couldn't help but grin at the comment.

"Yes. You've got a lot of patience. And you don't judge my stupid questions…"

"There aren't stupid questions, Elsa," said Gerda. "And you make it sound as if I judged your questions."

Elsa chuckled at Gerda and said, "Sorry. You were patient too, mum."

"Well, you are a pretty good teacher too. I loved learning how to ski," said Anna as she clapped with joy after finishing another part of the puzzle.

"I thought the accident had ruined the experience."

"On the contrary, I would love to take a few more classes when you start teaching again."

A big smile plastered on Elsa's face, "I'll be glad to teach you."

Anna then realised it would probably take more time than she originally thought for Elsa to start skiing again. She felt bad bringing the topic to light, but it was something she had wondered before, "will it be difficult for you to start skiing again?"

Elsa stopped working on the puzzle while she gave the question some thought. "I'm not sure. A few months, maybe? What do you think, mum?"

Gerda who was coming back to the table, stood behind her, and grabbed Elsa by the shoulders, "I really don't know, sweetheart. But I don't want you straining yourself."

Elsa's face fell. She knew it was the way Gerda told her to be patient. Elsa's reaction didn't go unnoticed by Anna who quickly apologised, "I wish things would have ended up differently…"

"I'm not going to lie, a month ago I would have said the same thing. But now… Now, I'm not too sure."

"What?"

"I hate the cast and I can't wait to be able to walk normally again," said Elsa looking at the crutches with disdain. "But things could have been a lot worse. I'm spending more time with my family, I'm studying once again and I'm glad we've got to know each other more. I really like your company, Anna." Elsa felt silly for what she was about to say but it was the truth, "you are the first friend I've made since I met Kristoff."

Anna imagined Elsa didn't have many friends but she couldn't believe she hadn't made any friends in over a decade, "Are you serious?"

Elsa nod her head, "I get along with some people in the North mountain, but I don't know if I can call them my friends."

Anna soon noticed Gerda kept working on the puzzle as if she was not at all surprised by what her daughter was claiming. "What about Marshmallow?" asked Anna. She knew the two of them talked over the phone from time to time. And Elsa had mentioned he was the one who kept an eye on her cottage.

"I like him. But the two of us are too awkward to become friends. We only talk about work."

"So, you like him… mmh?" interrupted Gerda, surprising both girls with her question.

"Yes, he is nice. And he's all the time trying to help me with-" seeing the playful wink Gerda gave Anna, Elsa stopped what she was saying. "What?"

It took Anna a second to understand Gerda was telling her to help her make fun of Elsa. "You like him," repeated Anna, using a mocking tone.

"Not like that!" That was the last thing Elsa needed, her mother and Anna plotting against her just to embarrass her.

"Come on! I bet that's why you don't consider him a friend," said Anna raising an accusatory finger. "You want to consider him something more."

"That's not true."

"Are you sure?" asked Gerda. Truth was the old woman started the conversation just to mess with her daughter, but she was truly curious to know if Elsa actually liked the mountaineer.

"Positive."

"We'll see. I'll believe it when I see the way you act around each other," said Anna.

She chucked at her insistence, "Think what you want. There's nothing between us."

They kept working on the puzzle for a minute before curiosity got the best of Anna, "What about other guys? Are you seeing someone?"

Elsa noticed the question was real this time, "No. I'm not really interested in dating."

"Really? Why?"

"I don't know… It's not for me I guess. I'm not a social person and the idea of dating someone doesn't really cross my mind." She looked at Gerda after giving her answer. She knew her mother was probably thinking her powers had something to do with the way she feel, and she wanted to reassure her that was not the case.

The old woman understood the silent message, but still tried to voice her disagreement, "It has nothing to do with being social, dear. You'll meet someone one day and you'll fall deeply in love."

"I'm not sure it works that way. But if you say so," she shrugged.

Anna had remained silent after the answer. Being honest, she had been waiting for something more than a simple 'I'm not interested'. But she guessed it was something too personal to question. Instead, she chose to continue teasing her sister-in-law, "you aren't interested because you're already in love with Marshall."

"You don't even know who Marshall is!"

"But you said you like him," Gerda cut in.

Resting her forehead in her hands, Elsa let a tired sigh out. "You are nuts. Both of you," but she had to laugh when she heard her mother and Anna's laugh. "Why the sudden interest in my love life?"

"Because we're friends, that's why," said Anna happily. "Also, we need to approve of your potential boyfriend so Kristoff doesn't kill him."

"Fair point."

The three of them were laughing when they heard the front door close and the tired voice of Kristoff say, "I don't kill who?"

"No one," Elsa was quick to answer. "Now take your girlfriend on your date so she stops making fun of me."

"I just got home," defended Kristoff. 'How is whatever is going on my fault?' he muttered to himself before throwing his things on the couch.


The following week storms had been worse than the weather forecast originally announced, forcing Kristoff to stay at home, and Anna's classes to be cancelled. For the two of them it meant a relaxing day, while for Elsa it meant more time studying. Anna took the opportunity to prepare a series of exercises and things for Elsa to work on her own. She wanted to test Elsa's understanding on the topic before starting a new one.

However, having Elsa working on her own meant she had a lot of free time just sitting by Elsa's side. She had tried staying silent for Elsa's sake, but after forty minutes not uttering a word, she felt the urge to talk about something.

"How's that exercise going?"

Not really sure if what she was doing was correct, Elsa asked, "fine?"

Anna chuckled at the question, "are you asking me?"

"I don't know. Maybe?" Sighing tiredly she admitted, "I don't know what I'm doing."

"Yes, you do. You said the same thing about the last four and all of them were perfect."

Elsa then tried to persuade Anna to change some of the assignments. She had been working on different math problems for over two hours and she was feeling more and more tired, "can't we go back to study geometry? I liked it better than algebra."

"No, the idea is for you to study and practice things you don't know nor understand, Elsa." Seeing Elsa's crestfallen expression she suggested, "Remember looking at your notes whenever you are in doubt. You are just learning, you don't need to remember everything right now."

That seemed to encourage Elsa who nodded and started working once again.

Luckily for Anna, Kristoff was reading the newspaper on the couch near them, and after a few more minutes in silence she made up her mind and asked, "Kristoff? What's your last name?"

The strange question made Kristoff raise his head with a questioning look on his face, "Uhm… Bjorgman? I thought we had talked about this when we met."

Anna heard the playful tone in her boyfriend's answer and decided to elaborate, "I know, silly. But I was thinking about your birth name. Not that it's important," she added quickly. "I was just curious and I remembered you once told me you changed your surname when you were adopted," she tried to justify her question. Anna knew it could be a sensitive topic. Fortunately, Kristoff just smiled at her and put the newspaper on the armrest.

"It's Hansen," he said simply. "I liked it, but I was never attached to it. When the social worker asked me if I wanted to change it into Kai and Gerda's, I said yes immediately."

"It never meant something to you?"

"Not really." Noticing it probably sounded wrong, he clarified, "I mean, I'd like to think my parents were good people and they deserved someone carrying their last name; but they died when I was four, so I don't remember much about them."

"I didn't know kids were allowed to change their name."

"It's only when the situation requires it," explained Kristoff. "I remember the social worker saying it was going to be easier for Kai and Gerda or something. I was just so excited I didn't really cared about the details, I said yes in a heartbeat and never regretted it."

Anna noticed Kristoff still remembered being adopted as one of the happiest moments of his childhood. It broke her heart to think about him all alone in the orphanage wishing to have a family. "You must have been so eager to go with them."

"You bet I was!" he grinned. "The only thing I liked about that place was Elsa." His smile disappeared as he said, "I felt really bad leaving her behind. That's why I never stopped asking Kai and Gerda to adopt her too."

At the mention of Elsa's name, Anna realised the girl must have had a different name before living with the Bjorgmans too. And so, Anna couldn't stop herself from asking, "What about you, Elsa?"

Elsa had been so focused on her work that she hadn't heard Kristoff mentioning her name before. She raised her head from her notebook, oblivious of the conversation around her, "What? What about me?"

"Your name," said Anna as if it was obvious what she was talking about.

Still a little lost she answered, "Elsa Bjorgman?"

'I'm starting to believe they are really brother and sister and they're just messing with me,' thought Anna as she chuckled at Elsa's answer. "No, I mean your birth name. I know you don't like talking about your past, but I'm curious about your and Kristoff's birth names."

"Oh, it's okay. It's… it's Elsa."

"Elsa…?" encouraged Anna. Hoping she would tell her the last name too.

"Elsa," she said a little embarrassed. "Just Elsa."

"Just Elsa?" That sounded strangely odd to Anna. "No last name?"

"I don't know. I guess-" Elsa cleared her throat. "I guess I must have had a last name. Perhaps the people at the orphanage never found out my real name."

Kristoff decided it was best to help Elsa. His sister usually struggled to explain those things to people, "Elsa was barely a toddler when she was left at the orphanage's door."

"Or that's what they told me," cut in Elsa. "I had a name tag with my name, but no last name."

"Oh." With no proper words to say, she chose to apologise, "Sorry, I- I didn't know."

"It's okay," said Elsa. "You didn't know."

"Have you ever wanted to know your real name?" After asking the question Anna felt like slapping her face. 'What a stupid question!' she thought mortified. But to her surprise, Elsa answered without a problem.

"I'm not going to lie and say I never gave it a second thought, but I don't want to anymore. I'm a Bjorgman now, and before that I was Elsa NN."

"NN?"

"It stands for nomen nescio or no name," explained Kristoff.

They stayed silent for a while and Elsa returned to her work. Both siblings thought Anna's questions were over when she distracted them again.

"Would you like to meet them?"

"What?" said Kristoff and Elsa, unsure to whom she was talking to.

"Given the chance, Elsa, would you like to meet your parents?"

"No, not really," she answered incredibly fast.

Anna was expecting her not to know what to answer, but not a simple no, "why?"

"Anna…" warned Kristoff. Letting her know she was in thin ice with her questions. Kristoff always made sure to keep conversations light when they revolved around Elsa's past.

She turned in her seat to look the disapproving look of her boyfriend, and answered, "What? It's an honest question!" Anna waited for Kristoff's comeback when both of them were surprised to hear Elsa answer the question.

"When I was a child," began Elsa. "I used to think about them and feel as if I had done something wrong, and that's why they had left me behind. For years I felt as if I needed to meet them to prove I was good enough." She took a deep breath, "With time, and the help of Kai and Gerda, I realised I was just a toddler when they abandoned me. I needed a family just like anyone else. Gerda helped me see I was not a nuisance just because I was different." Elsa was startled by her own answer after she finished, she had been thinking about all the things that had gone throw her head as a child, and she hadn't realised she had used the word different.

Anna was quick to catch it and asked, "Different?"

Elsa paled, not knowing what to say. Luckily, Kristoff had been listening to her answer to and was said, "she means different as in different from their original plans, which probably were 'not to have children', right, Elsa?"

"Yes! Yes, that's what I mean. Different than their plans, that is." Elsa made a mental note to thank her brother later that night.

Anna kept quiet for a few seconds, Kristoff and Elsa were waiting for another question but instead Anna put in Elsa's shoes for a second and said, "I think I'd like to meet them if I were you, just once, you know?"

Before Elsa knew what to say, she continued, "To show them who you are and how happy you are. To show them you didn't need them at the end. Now you've got a great family that loves you."

Elsa played with her pencil for a while, thinking about Anna's idea, "I really don't know how I would react."

"Wouldn't you like to tell them off? Just once? I'd certainly like to if I were you."

"Anna-," again Kristoff tried to warn her to stop insisting. But he was interrupted by his sister.

"Maybe… I- I don't know. I think it's best to live my life pretending they never existed." After the incident that led her to live with Kai and Gerda, she had stopped wondering about her parents. So much so, it was the first time Elsa wondered about how she'd react if she happened to meet them now that she was an adult.

"What about you Kristoff? What would you do in Elsa's situation?" said Anna.

"I'm not sure. I think Elsa's way of dealing with it is preferable," he was not going to entertain Anna's idea.

"You guys are goody two-shoes sometimes." She stopped herself and clarified, "No, scratch that, all the time. We are just pretending!"

"It's a sensitive topic, Anna," warned for the last time Kristoff.

Elsa, on the other hand, laughed at Anna's insistence, "Well… I guess that, given the chance, I would let them know how bad they screwed up. Especially, if I find out they never had a real reason to leave me behind."

"See!" exclaimed Anna looking towards Kristoff. "That's more like it! Show 'em, girl!"

Not wanting to start a pointless argument Kristoff said, "shouldn't the two of you be studying?"

"Actually, yes," answered Elsa. "And shouldn't you be cooking dinner?"

Looking at the clock for the first time since he had sat down to read the newspaper, Kristoff realised it was later than he originally imagined. "That's right! What do you want for dinner?"

"Don't count on me to stay. The storm has finally stopped and mum agreed to pick me up if the weather changed. I bet she'll be here any minute now."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, it's best for you too, Kristoff. You won't need to take me home later," she said smiling to her boyfriend. "Are you done, Elsa?"

Elsa had lost track of the conversation once again when the two of them began talking about the weather, so she was surprised by the question. "Oh? Yes. It's done," she said when she realised Anna was talking about her work.

"Great. I'll take it home and correct it later."

"Okay." Elsa then picked a paper she wanted Anna to see, "I've also been practicing my handwrit-"

She was interrupted by some knocks on the door which distracted Anna, "That must be my mum!"

Anna stood up and began picking her stuff while Kristoff opened the door to greet his mother-in-law. He loved the woman, he believed she was one of the nicest people in the world beside his parents. She was always ready to help and ready to give an advice. 'Just like Anna,' he thought smiling.

Elsa kept quiet from her seat on the kitchen table while Kristoff greeted the woman. It was the first time she saw Idunn, so far she had only heard stories about the woman from Kristoff and Anna. She was surprised to see she was younger than Gerda. She was taller than Anna and sophisticated. Something about her made Elsa feel unsure about herself, as if all of a sudden she was not good enough to be Anna's friends. Elsa knew those were just her insecurities playing her mind tricks but still, she thought it was going to be better to remain quiet.

"Ready, Anna?" asked Idunn once Anna neared the door where they were standing.

"Sure!" said Anna smiling, until she realised she had forgotten something important. "Oh! Mum that's Elsa over there," Anna turned around and pointed towards Elsa.

Elsa felt like running into the bathroom but she knew it was too late when she heard Idunn say, "Elsa? It's a pleasure to meet you! I've got to thank you so much, sweetheart!" Elsa waved from her seat and moved to pick her crutches. She knew how much Kristoff respected his in-laws and she felt standing up to greet her was the right thing to do.

"No, please, it's not necessary for you to stand up, dear," said Idunn as she raised her hand to stop Elsa from moving. "I don't want you straining yourself; besides, Anna and I need to go right now before the the snowstorm starts again."

"It's nice to meet you too," said Elsa, though she still felt unease about meeting Anna's mother. 'Why can't I act normal around strangers?' thought Elsa to herself with annoyance.

"I'm sorry I can't stay to thank you properly for what you did. But I tell you what, you and Kristoff are invited to join us for dinner," said Idunn happily.

"mmh…"

"Let's say next weekend," suggested Idunn before Elsa had a chance to answer.

"That'd be amazing," cut in Kristoff. "We'll be glad to join you."

For a second Elsa thought Kristoff was going to help her deny the invitation, but his answer forced her to try on her own, "It- It isn't necessary. I mean, I-"

"Oh, nonsense," interrupted Idunn. "Is Saturday okay?"

'Say no' thought Elsa to herself but Kristoff was faster once again.

"It works for us," replied Kristoff not daring looking at Elsa. He knew his sister was going to kill him once mother and daughter were out the door.

"Great!" said Idunn excitedly. "Saturday it is. You don't worry about a thing. Everything's on us." said Idunn before saying respective farewells to Elsa and Kristoff. Then, both women were out the door, leaving the siblings in silence.

Kristoff closed the door and turned around to explain his decision when he heard Elsa's question, "What did you do?"

"I accepted an invitation." Kristoff knew the question was coming and it was easier for him not to make a big deal out of it.

"Why?"

"Because it's the right thing to do," he said as he walked towards the fridge to see what he could prepare for dinner.

"You've been helping me to ditch this dinner for almost two months and now suddenly it's the right thing to do?"

He let out a tired sigh. He had always been the one who had to convince Elsa to participate in social events since they became siblings. He knew better than anyone Elsa's uneasiness; but it didn't mean he didn't wish his sister could join a family dinner for once. "Elsa, we've denied their invitation four times already. We've got no excuse. Besides, they are my in-laws I can't just say no."

"Exactly, they are your in-laws. Not mine. I've got the right to say no."

"Don't be childish. They just want to thank you," said Kristoff.

"But-"

"They are excellent people! Not to mention Idunn is a wonderful cook. You'll love them."

"I'm not saying they are bad people, Kristoff. I'm saying I'm not comfortable in someone else's house. Especially if it's someone you want to impress…" said Elsa.

"What?"

"I know you worry about they liking you."

"I don't worry about-"

"I know you do. You can't hide it from me."

Kristoff let out another sigh before admitting he did worry about it sometimes, "I want them to know I'm a good guy. That I would do anything for Anna."

"Exactly," said Elsa. "And I don't want them thinking any less of you because of me."

His sister's claim came as a surprise to Kristoff. He thought Elsa was just saying no because she felt uncomfortable - socially speaking -. He never thought she was doing it because she wanted to avoid any problems with his in-laws. 'As if it is possible they won't like her' thought Kristoff. He walked towards the table and sat beside Elsa, he wanted his sister full attention for what he was about to say, "Elsa, trust me, there's no way they won't like you. They love you already. You saved their only daughter."

"What if I mess up? They won't be okay with the idea of your sister being a freak of nature who could hurt their daughter," said Elsa looking at her hands.

Kristoff put both of his hands over Elsa's, it was something he had started doing whenever Elsa thought about herself as dangerous. "Stop it. You know I don't like that," he said with a tender voice.

"It's true."

"I'm serious. Cut it out. You are not dangerous."

Over the years Kristoff had said that to her so many times, she had started to believe in his words. However, it didn't mean she didn't doubt his words from time to time. Right at that moment, she realised there was no point in arguing with Kristoff and answered, "Fine. But you know what I mean. I get nervous talking with strangers and these strangers are important to you. I can't stop worrying."

"Just be yourself and they'll love you. They already do. Trust me."


I apologise once again for the long hiatus. I wanted to make sure this chapter involved everything I needed before the awaited 'family dinner' that I mention in the description of the story. We are getting closer to the main event and I've got to admit I'm a little nervous of what you guys will think of it.

Anyway, let me know what you guys think of this chapter and the story so far. I could really use some comments to see how I'm doing.

A big thank you to those readers who have followed the story since the beginning and to those new readers as well.