What's there to lose?

Elsa sidestepped, avoiding the lower branch of a tree, as she kept walking forward trying her best not to look back. Ignoring Anna, who was following close behind, had become a challenge that kept getting harder the longer Elsa stayed silent. For some reason she didn't understand, her silence did nothing but fuel Anna's teasing.

She had tried her best to explain herself several times to the girl, but it had been useless. Anna was determined to make her day, and possibly her week, miserable. And the worst thing was, she had no one else to blame but herself. If she hadn't lied to Anna, maybe she could have avoided the constant remarks and looks she kept sending her way.

To her dismay, forgetting her keys in Marshall's house had not only given Anna the perfect reason to make fun of her, it had also locked her out of her own house. Forcing both women to walk all the way to the Vandreren resort.

At the beginning, Elsa had tried channelling her embarrassment and frustration into something useful. Like trying to enter her cottage through the back door and windows. But now that there was little she could do until they arrived at the ski resort, she was running out of ideas on how to ignore Anna's teasing. And to make things worse, it was a long way, giving the other girl plenty of opportunities to make fun of her.

After ducking to avoid yet another branch, Elsa turned around to make sure Anna was still following. She may have been embarrassed, but the last thing she needed was Anna getting lost in the North mountain. She regretted her decision, however, as soon as she saw Anna walking a few steps behind with a ridiculous grin on her face.

"Can you, please, stop smiling?" asked Elsa hoping the tenth time was the charm.

"No," she answered, her smile becoming impossibly bigger. "I'm really enjoying the way life is punishing you for lying to me. To think you almost get away with it."

Elsa rolled her eyes and returned her attention to the trail in front of her. The sooner she retrieved her keys the better.

She heard Anna laugh and soon she was walking by her side and trying miserably to avoid the twigs in the narrow trail. "I'm happy for you, you know?" She still had a smile on her face, but the mocking tone had disappeared. "Marshall looks like a good guy - a Teddybear kind of guy."

"Teddybear? What are you talk-? You know what? It doesn't matter. Nothing happened," she said, stopping herself mid sentence before she sidetracked. "We only had dinner together."

"Yeah, right," Anna scoffed. "I'd like to ask his bed."

"Anna!" Not for the first time, Elsa wished Anna didn't notice the blood rushing to her face.

"Oh, come on! You really want me to believe-"

"I fell asleep on the couch while we watched a movie. And I woke up there this morning - alone," she clarified, as soon as she saw Anna open her mouth.

"Okay, let's assume I believe you." Anna answered, trying to make Elsa come out from her defensive stance. "But then, why did you lie to me?"

"Because you're insufferable when you start making fun of me."

Anna first laughed wholeheartedly at Elsa's answer, but soon the idea of Elsa actually getting tired of her didn't set well with her. "I'm not insufferable, am I? I don't try to be. I mean, I do want to make fun of you right now because it's super fun to see you try to come up with excuses. That doesn't mean I want to-"

"I didn't mean it literally," Elsa put her hand on Anna's shoulder reassuringly. If Elsa was honest with herself, she didn't find Anna's mockery annoying. It only made her uncomfortable. It forced her to think and reconsider the way she felt about Marshmallow, something she was definitely not ready to do. "Now… Can you, please, stop talking for a few seconds? I haven't been able to hear myself think since we left home."

Smiling like a cheshire cat, Anna took the opportunity to tease Elsa one last time. "You're just cranky because you didn't get much sleep last night."

She continued walking, not realising Elsa had stopped in her tracks after her remark. And before Anna knew what happened, a snowball hit her in the nape of her neck and fell down the neck of her shirt.

"You stinker!" she yelled, as she tried to get the snow out.

"That'll teach you to stay quiet," answered Elsa mimicking her original smile and walking past her.

"It's incredibly unfair of you to start a snowball fight during Spring, you know?" she complained even though she was happy to see Elsa less tense, finally using her powers around her. Once she was able to get all the snow from inside her clothes, she jogged to catch up with Elsa. "How long until we get to the resort?"

"We shouldn't be far from the fence."

"Fence?" Anna looked around trying to find it. "I thought you people didn't use fences around here." Not once had they come across one before. Not even that first week Anna visited Elsa. And they had trekked the mountain for kilometres.

"Most of the people around here don't. We are a community and we try to share the land as much as possible. It's like an unspoken agreement." Elsa began to explain. "But for some reason, the owner of this place never agreed to it. Always wanting to be clear about his land."

They continued walking for a while until they reached a tall chain link fence. As soon as they were close enough, Elsa kneeled down in front of a line post to undo a knot which was keeping the chain link in place.

"What are you doing?"

"Let's just say we found a way to peacefully force the owner of the land to obey the community rules," Elsa answered with a smirk. She then moved the chain link out of the way and let Anna go through the fence first.

"Isn't this considered trespassing?"

"Not necessarily. He can't deny access to the mountain itself. Only to his buildings." Once she tied the chain link to the post again, she motioned Anna to follow her.

"Did Marshall have anything to do with that improvised shortcut?"

"He did," Elsa answered with a smile. "After he tore his favourite jacket with the barbed wire."

"Couldn't he just use the gates? You know, like a normal person?"

"The gates are a kilometre away from here. In that direction." Her hand pointing West, opposite to the trail they had just been walking.

Anna huffed at the thought. The mere idea of walking an extra kilometre only to walk all the way back to get to the administration made her tired. "I'll never get used to the distances here. Everything is so far away from everything."

"It isn't that far," Elsa shrugged. "I just live four kilometres away from here."

"And how far is Marshall's place from yours?"

"Three… or five?" She guessed, not sure about the answer.

"Five?!" Anna exclaimed. She hadn't really thought about the part where they had to walk all the way to Marshall's cottage until that moment. "Couldn't you pick another day to forget your keys in his place?" She wished Elsa kept a spare key hidden somewhere.

"I wish I had," answered Elsa truthfully. "It would have spared me your mockery."

They continued walking for a few more minutes until they reached the glade where the administration was situated. There were less and less trees as they got close to it, and Anna could clearly see more and more cabins in the exchange. Probably they are all part of the accommodation, Anna thought as she tried to guess how much people paid for a night in that place. After all, everything looked new and modern, even if it kept the wooden style of the rest of the cottages in the North mountain.

"Here we are," said Elsa once they reached the main building.

"Wow…" Anna couldn't help but exclaim. A two story building was placed right in the middle of the glade. Planned timber walls and thermal windows were the first two things that called Anna's attention. For sure the owner had spent a great amount of money. A noticeable contrast with the rest of the cottages in the mountain. "This place is fancy for a resort in the middle of nowhere."

"There's a reason all the wealthy families pick this place for their winter holidays. Westergaard didn't skimp on costs."

"Wait," Anna stopped Elsa grabbing her by the arm. "What did you just say?"

"He didn't skimp on co-"

"No," she interrupted. "Not that. The name."

"Westergaard?"

"Yes. Do you mean Petter Westergaard?"

"I don't know his first name." Elsa made an effort to remember if he had mentioned his name the only time he had given her the chance of a job interview; but coming up with nothing, she offered the only other thing she knew about the man. "He's got ten or twelve sons. Some of them come here often."

Anna couldn't hide her disgust when she realised they were talking about the same person, and her expression soon made Elsa wonder what was wrong. "Is there a problem?"

"You can't possibly want to work for this man," said Anna frankly.

"Wanting and needing aren't necessarily the same thing. I can't really choose where to work." Elsa then climbed the front steps leading to the double doors of the administration.

"Everyone's got a choice, Elsa." Anna complained even though she knew it wasn't the right time to discuss Elsa's future.

"Not everyone." People didn't pay a second look at her resume as soon as they found out she hadn't gone to school. They all offered a sympathetic smile and thanked her for her time. It didn't matter how much she wanted to learn or improve, every interview ended the same way. What was worse, her powers didn't give her many options.

"You do have a choice. This man is-" insisted Anna, but she was soon interrupted by Elsa.

"We're not discussing this now, Anna," she hissed. "I'd like to be able to speak to Marshmallow before they kick us out for badmouthing the owner."

Before Anna could retort, however, the doors opened and a tall red haired man appeared. And to her mortification it was her least favourite Westergaard. Hans.

"What are you doing here?" Hans asked, as soon as he saw Elsa at the door.

"I need to talk to-"

Not feeling particularly chatty, he thought it was best to save the girl the trouble of explaining herself. "I thought my father was clear the last time you were here. We are not hiring you. Don't you have any self-res-" Noticing for the first time the person standing close to Elsa, he interrupted what he was saying. Interested in finding out what his ex girlfriend was doing there. "Anna?"

"Hello Hans," Anna answered, trying her best to act civilized. She couldn't help but still feel anger and disappointment whenever she saw Hans. And even if she no longer had feelings for the man, the wish to punch him in the face still lingered. Needing all her willpower to stop herself from doing it.

Elsa's eyes widened as she turned around to look at Anna, and then back at Hans. She had never heard Anna talk with a callous tone of voice before.

"I'm not here to talk about that," Elsa said after she came out of her initial surprise. As she tried to get the conversation back on track. "I'm looking for Marshmallow."

Ignoring Elsa as if she hadn't uttered a word, Hans addressed Anna once again, "What are you doing here?"

"None of your business."

"Can you please call him?" asked Elsa, hoping the man would listen to her for at least two seconds.

Still gazing at Anna with curious eyes, he asked, "Who?"

Taking a deep breath, she tried again, "Marshall. I need to talk to him."

"He's working."

"It'll just take a minute or two."

"I said he's busy," he repeated, clearly annoyed. "You should-"

Not tolerating Hans' disrespect anymore, Anna climbed the front steps and, slamming her hand on the wooden door, she demanded, "Can you call the man, Hans?"

The ex couple looked at each other viciously until Hans gave in. "Ugh, fine. Wait here." Slamming the door closed, he made clear they were not invited in.

Sighing tiredly, Anna commented, "he's an assclown."

"I guess you already know him… Don't you?" The answer was quite clear, but Elsa was still surprised by Anna's behaviour and wanted to know the story behind the two of them.

"Sadly I do…" She averted her gaze from Elsa's, not wishing to explain the whole story then. "It's a long story."

The doors opened once again before Elsa could get Anna to share anything else, and her curiosity was soon forgotten. Marshmallow was standing right in front of her, and she needed to ask for his keys before Hans kicked them out.

"Elsa?"

"Hi," she greeted with a smile that didn't go unnoticed by Anna. "Do you have a minute?"

A nod of his head told Elsa all she needed to know, and soon she was pushing Marshall to a side, away from Hans' prying eyes.

She felt bad for leaving Anna standing alone with Hans while she talked, but she suspected Anna knew exactly how to deal with the insufferable man.

Trying to be fast about it, she explained to Marshmallow what had happened and the reason for her visit. She needed his keys and permission to retrieve her own keys. She felt uncomfortable asking for the keys to his house like that, but she had run out of ideas.

To her relief, he thought nothing of it and soon handed her his keys, not before explaining what key she needed to use and for her to keep them for the day.

"Are you sure?" asked Elsa, surprised by his suggestion.

"Yes. I'll pick them up after work."

"Thanks! Anna will be happy she doesn't need to walk all the way back here."

"Since you mentioned Anna…" said Marshall as he pointed where Hans and Anna were still standing by the double doors. Hans kept asking Anna questions while she tried her best to ignore the man. "Are Hans and her acquaintances?"

"I guess so. I'm not really sure."

"She's not enjoying the guy's company, is she?"

"I don't think so. No." The girl's body language said the complete opposite in Elsa's opinion. The one doing all the talking was Hans, while Anna tried to put as much physical distance between the two of them as possible.

For a moment the girls' eyes locked and, by the way Anna's eyebrows raised, Elsa knew she was begging to be rescued from the undesired company.

Her expression didn't go unnoticed by Marshall who soon suggested Elsa helped Anna. "Go. Be a good older sister and put her out of her misery."

"I'm not really her older sister. But I guess you're right, no one deserves to be left alone with a Westergaard."

Marshall looked at her with a puzzled expression for a moment but didn't comment on it.

"Please tell me you're ready," asked Anna, as soon as Elsa was back.

"I've got the keys, " she said, showing the keychain triumphantly.

Both girls were already leaving when Hans' mocking tone called their attention. "Never thought you'd rub shoulders with obtuse mountaineers, Anna," he laughed. "Does Mr. Arendelle know about this? He always wanted what was best for his princess, did he not?"

"Drop dead." She no longer cared about acting civilised. His stupid remark was hurtful towards Elsa and Marshall and she was not going to tolerate that. To her surprise, Hans didn't answer back. He simply entered the administration leaving both girls alone.

Anna turned around to apologise for Hans' behaviour, but she was surprised to see Elsa walking down the trail, as if nothing had happened. She didn't say anything when Anna caught up with her either.

Part of Anna thought it was best to just ignore Hans, just like Elsa was doing. But she felt guilty, part of her believed Hans would have been more welcoming if she hadn't been by Elsa's side. "You shouldn't care about the things Hans says."

"I don't," said Elsa looking down. "Don't worry."

Something told Anna Elsa wasn't being completely honest, and what worried Anna the most was not knowing if Elsa cared about Hans calling her obtuse, or about their father always wanting what was best for his 'princess'. The worst thing about that idea was it was true. Agdar had always wanted what was best for her, and Anna still couldn't comprehend how he had been able to give her so much while Elsa was out there on her own.

Not knowing what to say or how to tackle that conversation, Anna remained silent. Simply walking by Elsa's side. Her thoughts were interrupted, however, by Elsa who after a few minutes in silence decided to learn more about Anna's past.

"Where do you know Hans from?"

"School," she said, tentatively. "And he... umm, he's my ex boyfriend." She was about to explain their story better when she heard Elsa laugh.

"I may be slow-witted – like Hans says. But I'm not gullible," joked Elsa. "Seriously, where do you know him from?"

Not feeling entirely proud of her past relationship, Anna tried to come up with a reasonable explanation for having dated a man like Hans; but it was hard when Elsa wouldn't even believe it.

"You are joking, right?"

Anna sighed as she tried to find the right words. "I'd love to, but no?"

Elsa stayed silent for a moment, not knowing what to say. After all, she had just laughed in Anna's face. "Sorry. I didn't think you were serious."

"Don't worry. I can see why you don't think of him as boyfriend material," she answered with a chuckle. "He's water under the bridge now."

"He better be," Elsa said, not really threatening Anna. "I wouldn't forgive you if you cheated on my brother with someone like Hans."

"You wouldn't forgive me if I cheated on Kristoff. Period," laughed Anna, even though she knew it was true. From the beginning she had understood how important Elsa was to Kristoff and how deeply Elsa cared for her brother.

"That's true, I wouldn't," she agreed. "What did you see in him?"

"Your brother?"

Elsa narrowed her eyes at Anna faking annoyance, before clarifying, "Hans."

"Oh! I'm not sure." She shrugged. "I was naive when we started dating, I guess. I thought he was Prince Charming." Elsa's incredulous expression told Anna she was still trying to comprehend what she was hearing. "Penny for your thoughts, Elsa?

"How low did you set your bar to consider him Prince Charming?"

"You don't like him, I gather." If she was honest with herself, Anna couldn't really blame Elsa. Hans could really be unpleasant at times.

"I can't stand him."

There was no lie in Elsa's statement and Anna wondered just how annoying someone could be to earn Elsa's ill will. However, Elsa's aversion to the man only increased her curiosity. "There's something I don't understand… Why do you want to work for his father?"

Sighing tiredly, knowing she couldn't get away from the conversation they had started earlier, Elsa admitted, "I can't afford working on my own anymore. Even if I love what I do, it's hard to compete against the big, fancy resorts and their skilled instructors."

"Marshall says you're the best around here…"

"Right…" said Elsa ironically.

"I'm serious!" insisted Anna. "He says you make skiing look easy and natural."

"When did you talk to him, exactly?"

"Oh, here or there, that's not important." Anna tried to hide the fact she had actually tried to find, on several occasions, how Marshmallow felt about Elsa. Most of the time failing miserably since the man only offered a few words or nods in response to her questions. "What I'm trying to say is, you don't need to work for Westergaard if you don't want to. There are other options."

Knowing Anna was only trying to help, Elsa thought it was best to explain her situation better. "Sooner or later I'll need to work for them – or any other resort. I can no longer use the main slope as an independent instructor. Only registered ski schools can use it."

"Can't you pay to use it?"

"I can," she said with a nod of her head. "But I won't be able to compete with the resorts' prices if I charge my clients that extra amount of money." With a dry laugh she admitted, "I don't have much to offer to begin with. I can't ask people to pay more for second-hand equipment and the same slope everyone is using."

"Yet, you were fully booked." Anna hoped Elsa could see people actually cared more about their instructor than they did about the fancy equipment and accommodation. Maybe there were people who only wanted the best of the best, but in her experience those were the minority.

Elsa shrugged, dismissing the idea. "I didn't raise my prices. I worked hard to prepare a slope, which at the end wasn't even safe."

Anna tried hard to ignore the comment about the slope, knowing it was going to steer the conversation away from the matter at hand. Though, she made a mental note to discuss it in the future. "I'm sure you're offering people something they want. Not everyone wants to spend their holidays in a fancy place."

It only took Anna one look at Elsa's face to understand she wasn't believing a word she was saying. "Don't look at me like that. I'm serious. Your slope is great, it wasn't finished when the accident happened. And I'm sure your snow is way better than the one snow guns can produce."

Elsa laughed at the last comment and put her arm around Anna's shoulder. A simple way to thank her for the encouragement. "You're way too optimistic. Did you know that?"

"And you're way too pessimistic," counterred Anna, knowing part of Elsa still felt unsure about the idea. "Why don't you think about it? What's there to lose?"

"I guess…"

"I can assure you it will be better than working for Petter Westergaard and his family." If Anna had to choose between starving and working for the Westergaards, she would starve without complaint. But she believed in Elsa's capabilities, and she knew for a fact her sister was going to be alright on her own.

"Wasn't Hans your boyfriend?" asked Elsa once she realised the way Anna spoke about her ex boyfriend's family. "What happened between the two of you exactly?"

"It's a long story." But it didn't matter how much she wished to avoid the conversation, Anna knew Elsa was going to insist until she told her.

"It's a long way to Marshall's house…"

"Fine. I'll tell you," she said without much complaint. "But! You cannot laugh nor lose respect in me. I'm still your teacher and I deserve respect."

Elsa laughed and circled her arm around Anna's. "Just tell me the story already."


After Elsa and Anna left, Marshall made an effort to keep working on his tasks as he tried to ignore Hans. The young Westergaard had lingered close to him, walking in circles and murmuring to himself for hours. From time to time he left the administration, giving the mountaineer a few minutes on his own, only to return soon after and continue with his pathetic behaviour.

In Marshall's opinion, there was clearly something bothering the man and he wanted to talk about it. But as usual, the boy's ridiculous pride didn't allow him to simply ask the question he had in mind.

Several times, Marshmallow took advantage of the situation, asking Hans for tools he needed and using him as his personal helper. He had to admit, he had taken great pleasure seeing the man so lost in thought he complied to every request without complaint.

It was only when Marshall began working on the last of his tasks that Hans put his pride aside and asked, "what was that girl doing with Anna?"

"Her name is Elsa." Marshall didn't really mind Hans' mistreatment. There were moments he even found it amusing. It was fun to see the guy try to get on his nerves and fail most of the time. But he couldn't really stand whenever he talked about his friend in a deprecatory tone.

"Fine," answered Hans with a sigh. "What was Elsa doing with Anna?"

Lying on the floor, he silently cursed whoever had thought putting the bolts under the heater was a good idea. He worked his way around the gas pipe and continued with his work. Not really paying attention to the question.

"I asked you a question," demanded Hans.

"They are friends."

"Friends?"

Contrary to popular belief, Marshall didn't mind having meaningless conversations with his friends or Elsa; even if it was true he did prefer listening rather than talking. However, he hated forced conversations like the one Hans was trying to have at the moment. "Yes, friends. Why?"

"They don't seem to have anything in common."

"I think it's logical for sisters-in-law to become friends eventually," he said, after he finished securing the artifact to the wall. He thought it was best not to mention anything about Elsa being Anna's sister.

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said. They are sisters-in-law." Marshall couldn't help feeling slightly happy when he noticed Hans' knitted brows. But, even if it was amusing, he had better things to do than spending time with him that evening. Part of him hoped Elsa was not busy with her family and they could have dinner together again. "Anyway, I'm done," he said, proudly.

Coming back from the stupefaction of finding out Anna was dating Elsa's brother, Hans tried to keep some dignity and returned to his typical aggressiveness. "Took you long enough. Is everything working properly?"

"It is," answered Marshmallow, sure of his work.

"Good."

"Tell your father I'll stop by tomorrow. It's 1000 kr."

"What? Don't you work for him?"

"Yes," he said, trying his best not to lose his temper. "I am a ski instructor in his resort. Not his maintenance guy. He knows I charge extra for this kind of work."

Marshall was surprised to see Hans' worried expression before he said, "you don't need to stop by tomorrow. I'll give you the money now."

"There's no need. I already have to talk to him about other things. Just let him know I'll stop by." He tried to walk past Hans, ready to leave, when the man stopped him.

"You don't understand," he insisted. "You can't tell my father, or my brothers for that matter, I was here."

"I think he needs to know-"

"If it's working then he doesn't need to know," Hans interrupted.

"It's his property."

"I'll give you 1500 kr cash. Right now." He shook the money in front of Marshall's face. "Just don't tell him.

"I don't know." Hans was putting him in a difficult situation. He didn't want to keep information from Petter, nor give the guy the gratification of keeping his secret; but the extra 500 kr were more welcomed than he wanted to admit. So, going against his principles, he took the money from his hand. "It's the last time I fix anything for you. Next time, call your father before you call me."

"Fine by me," agreed Hans with annoyance. "Just keep your mouth shut."

The walk back to Elsa's home was peaceful, but Marshall couldn't stop regretting his decision. He needed the money, but part of him thought it would have been better to just talk to his boss about it.

Nonetheless, before he could make up his mind about returning, he reached Elsa's cottage. He climbed the steps two at a time and knocked on her door.

A moment later she opened the door, and her smile helped him forget about his mixed-up feelings in an instant.

"For a moment I thought you had forgotten about your keys," she said happily. "What took you so long?"

"I have no idea what Hans did last night, but I had to fix the two windows, a lamp and a heater today," he said chuckling.

"What?"

With a nod he assured the girl he was being honest. "He paid me some extra money just to keep my mouth shut. I guess it was some kind of party."

"Impossible. He would have invited us." She laughed and opened the door wider for him to enter. "Do you want to come in?"

Not wishing to interrupt a private moment, he asked, "aren't you having dinner with your family tonight?"

"Kristoff couldn't make it and Anna left an hour or so ago. So… " She gestured with her head for him to enter, which he gladly accepted.

"Would you like some coffee?" She asked as she began to pick up her books from the kitchen table.

"How about dinner?" He didn't want to impose, but the truth was he was starving and he was curious about Elsa's cooking skills.

"No." She shook her head several times. "I won't cook dinner for you."

"Take pity on me. I'm starving." He watched her order her things with pleading eyes. He knew she was trying hard not to pay attention, so he silently insisted until she couldn't do anything else but accept his request.


An hour and a half later, Elsa had some pasta ready for them to enjoy. She made sure she picked something easy – almost impossible to mess up – in order to keep some dignity. To her relief, the food was surprisingly good and both of them could enjoy dinner, happily chatting about their day.

Elsa told him everything Anna and she had done during the day. Always making sure she didn't mention any embarrassing thing Anna had insisted on about them. Marshmallow, on his part, told Elsa about his work and more importantly about Hans' discontent about finding out Anna was dating Kristoff. Soon the conversation turned to Anna and Hans' past, as well as the story of how Kristoff swept Anna off her feet.

"It was by chance, really. Anna needed a ride and Kristoff happened to be at her university delivering ice. By the time he came out from the cafeteria, Anna was waiting for him by his truck and simply asked him for a ride." Elsa took a sip of her drink, and then continued, "a month later they were dating."

"Why?"

Elsa raised an eyebrow and guessed, "Because they liked each other?"

"No. Not the dating part. Why was she waiting for him?"

"Anna says the ice factory was 'close to her father's company'." Elsa air-quoted with a smirk.

"You don't believe her."

"Not in the least," she laughed. "They had talked to each other in the cafeteria before then. And I'm sure she just wanted to get to know him."

"Lucky guy," he said, absent-mindedly. "The rest of us have to find ridiculous excuses to talk to the girls we like."

Taking a chance to get to know more about that side of him, Elsa dared ask, "What was the most ridiculous excuse you've used?"

Only then realising what he'd said, Marshall cleared his throat in embarrassment as he picked his own drink to buy himself some time. He could think of several idiotics things he had come up with, but he knew Elsa had a good memory and part of him feared she was going to remember them. "I can't recall."

Elsa chuckled, clearly not believing his answer. But she cut the guy some slack the moment she noticed his embarrassment. She couldn't help but wonder who the girl was, though. It wasn't usual to see him so flustered after all.

Trying to regain some composure and steer the conversation away from him, Marshall asked the first thing that came to mind, "isn't it strange Anna ended up being your sister?" But the mental slap didn't take long to come once he realised he asked for the most sensitive subject in Elsa's life at the moment.

To his good luck, Elsa thought nothing of it and simply answered, "Anna insists it was destiny or something. I'm not so sure about that. Just mere coincidence."

"Statistically speaking there aren't many chances for that to happen."

"Guess not." Elsa pondered for a while what were really the chances but, having no idea how to estimate them, she got rid of the thought.

"Can I ask you something?" Marshmallow said, calling her attention.

"Sure."

"Why did you say you aren't Anna's older sister, today? Aren't you a couple of years older than her?"

It took Elsa a while to realise she had indeed corrected Marshall earlier that day. She had no reason to do it, really. But her brain had reacted on its own. "You're right. I am."

"Then, why?"

"I don't know." She tried to put her ideas in order and continued, "I guess I don't feel comfortable simply accepting her as my sister. It's- what?" Marshmallow's confused expression stopped her in her tracks, forcing her to ask him what was wrong.

"Nothing," he said, quickly. "It's not my place."

"You can say whatever you want Marshmallow…" She hadn't planned to talk to him about her situation with Anna particularly; but she was not going to deny his advice if he was willing to share his thoughts.

"I just don't understand, that's all. You're clearly happy when she's around, and you love her as your sister-in-law. What's stopping you from accepting her as your sister?"

"To be honest… I think it's the fact Anna has this unyielding hope her parents and the two of us will become a family one day. A real one. And I feel I'll just end up disappointing her if I start calling her my sister but I never truly give her parents a second chance."

"What gave you that idea?" In the short time he had gotten to know Anna, Marshall had realised the girl had a soft spot for Elsa. It was practically impossible for him to imagine Anna being disappointed in her older sister.

"Anna brought these letters to me the other day…"

"Letters?"

With a nod of her head, Elsa explained, "Idunn – my biological mother – wrote them to me. I didn't want to accept them at first, but Anna insisted so much I felt bad not keeping them."

Marshall could see her predicament better. However, he still believed it was best for Elsa to embrace the good things life was bringing with that mess. It wasn't every day you found a sibling in someone you already knew and loved. And pushing Anna away could end up backfiring, becoming a bigger problem.

"Care for my opinion?" he asked, hoping he was not overstepping. He waited for her to nod before continuing, "I don't see why your parents' actions should discredit Anna as a sister. The two of you can be sisters even if you don't forgive your parents."

"Do you think so?" She asked, not sure if it was a real possibility.

"The fact you gave this whole 'letters' thing a chance shows you care, so I'm sure you can." He offered a smile and tried to explain his point of view without giving Elsa another reason to worry. "On the other hand, I'm sure Anna cares enough about you to be your sister even if the 'perfect family' never comes to be. However…"

"However?"

"She can get tired of you pushing her away all the time. She's in this mess too and she's been trying to be supportive. But we all have a limit."

She fixed her gaze on the table, trying to make sense of what he was saying. The idea of Anna getting tired of her way of seeing things hadn't crossed her mind before.

"All I'm saying is…" Her knitted brows didn't sit well with Marshall and he soon tried to explain himself better. "Other people would simply ignore their bastard sibling's existence altogether. You're lucky Anna loved and accepted you from the start. Don't turn away from that."

Elsa looked at him incredulously for a few seconds, before stating, "You're too blunt sometimes."

"Sorry."

"Don't be," she said with a gentle smile. "I haven't thought about it that way and I think it helps. Thanks, Marshmallow."

Wanting to lighten the mood, after being the one to blame for the change in conversation, he said, "does that mean you owe me another dinner?"

He knew his question had the desired effect the moment Elsa raised her head and asked the hell he was talking about. He grinned and simply explained, "I helped you figure this out, didn't I? I deserve something in return."

Not giving Elsa enough time to answer, he continued, "Besides, I was hoping you'd try a little bit harder, you know? Pasta is pretty simple to cook."

"You are not allowed to complain after you ate two servings!" she said indignant, throwing him the dishcloth she had at hand. Something that made him laugh wholeheartedly.


I should start by apologising for the long hiatus. I'm not going to blame life this time. I deliberately took a break which ended up being longer than I imagined, but I really needed it. I tried to put some ideas in order and see where I wanted to go with the story from here. I had several ideas and I finally found the right path. Or so I think.

I hope the wait was worth it, even though I'm not entirely happy with this chapter. I feel as if my writing is a bit rusty, haha.

Please let me know what you think! I could really use your opinions.

I could also use your help with a little thing. It's about Marshmallow's character… I'd like to know what you guys think of him and if you'd like to read a bit more about him or if I should merely leave him as a side character. Feel free to be completely honest. It may influence the path I take from here. (Do not worry, Elsa, Anna and their family are still my main focus and that will not change).

I would like to send a big hug to those who took the time to write to me just to make sure I was okay. I can't thank you enough guys. Reading those messages really made me smile. It's nice to know you care. 3