Winter's Echo
Chapter Thirty-Six – Reunited
Revontuli cradled the unconscious queen close against her, protecting her as best as she could from the rain. Her arms shook as she held her, grinding her teeth against the pain in her head.
"Maren..."
That whispered word had broken the firefox once again, memories of the hundreds of times the beautiful woman had uttered it before in all manners of ways. Laughing gleefully as she swept the blonde queen into her arms. Chidingly when she had made a cheeky comment, blue pools twinkling with amusement. Whispered like a prayer, chanted again and again as she made love to the goddess, guiding her to the heights of pleasure as she worshipped every inch of her soft, pale skin.
"ELSA?!"
A panicked cry broke the firefox from her reverie, her head snapping up to the balcony of Elsa's bedroom. Leaning over the stone barrier was the redheaded queen, searching the ground through the pouring rain with wide, fearful eyes. They followed the icy ramp and the trail of blood the queen had left as she made her hasty escape. Teal eyes squinted as they fell on Revontuli and Elsa, widening again at the position she found them in. She screamed her sister's name again and leapt onto the icy ramp without a second's hesitation, nearly a dozen soldiers following close behind her.
Revontuli scooped the comatose queen into her arms, lifting her effortlessly as she stood and glared down the approaching strangers. The firefox felt an incredible surge of protectiveness for the queen that manifested itself in a line of fire that blazed across the grass, separating them from the soldiers. The fire roared to life at its mistress's will as though the rain didn't exist, pink and purple flames licking toward the heavens themselves. She knew, logically, that the blonde had nothing to fear from her own soldiers, but something deep inside of her refused to let anyone near the prone queen. Elsa was completely defenseless and entirely reliant on her for protection right now.
The firefox found she would rather die than fail in that duty.
"STAY AWAY FROM HER!"
The soldiers and Anna skidded to a halt on the wet grass as the fiery barrier blazed to life. Revontuli snarled dangerously, her eyes flaring in bright pinks and purples that matched the inferno before her, glaring daggers at the soldiers. "Any man that DARES to touch her will DIE!" Anna brought her forearm in front of her to shield her face and her eyes from the heat and light of the blaze. "LET MY SISTER GO, BOUNTY HUNTER!" Anna screamed, walking as close to the fire as she dared. As she got closer, her arm slowly lowered, squinting her eyes for a moment before gasping as they took in a familiar heart-shaped face and long dark tresses, her hands flying to her mouth as she backed away a few steps in disbelief. "It...it can't be..."
Revontuli turned quickly, hearing the heavy footsteps of two dozen more soldiers sprinting from around the gardens, flanking her on either side. She growled, the color in her eyes flaring once more in anger. The flame wall that separated her from Anna grew higher and rapidly traced a protective circle around her and the winter queen, encircling them in the blaze. She looked around wildly like a trapped animal – she didn't want to hurt anyone if she didn't have to, but it appeared she would have no choice.
"Everyone, get back! Now!"
Revontuli's head swiveled around to look at the redheaded queen who was watching her with a baffled expression, her hands motioning for her soldiers to move away. "I said get BACK! That is a direct order from your Queen!" The firefox's eyes flicked suspiciously between the queen's and the slowly retreating soldiers before finally settling on redhead, her arms tightening their hold on the blonde cradled against her. The younger woman held her hands up in a peaceful gesture, walking close to the flames again. "Honeymaren...it's me, Anna. Don't you recognize me? Do you know where you are?" she asked gently, as though speaking to a skittish animal.
Revontuli's posture slouched slightly as she fought not to double over in pain, gritting her teeth tightly. "My name is Revontuli!" she yelled in frustrated pain, her eyes flaring between the colors of the magical flames and a chocolate brown. "I was sent by Ahtohallan to protect this woman and I won't let anyone hurt her EVER again!" Anna's brow furrowed in helpless confusion – confusion she set aside as she saw the dark-haired woman holding her sister's unconscious form begin to pace slightly in a way that seemed all too familiar. A phantom twinge of sharp, icy pain in her chest reminded her exactly how this scenario may turn out if she didn't proceed with more caution this time. She took a deep, calming breath and lowered her voice to a more soothing tone.
"Okay," she said gently, making a pacifying motion with her hands. "That's okay – you said your name is Revon...tuli? Revontuli?" The firefox's eyes flicked between her and the clearly antsy soldiers once more before nodding curtly. Anna nodded in return, offering what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "Okay, Revontuli. My name is Anna. Elsa is my sister. Can I come see her?" Anna bit her lip when she saw the dark-haired woman's arms tighten protectively around the queen, cradling her just a bit closer. You can't have her. "I love her more than anything in this whole world, Revontuli," Anna continued immediately, keeping her voice soft and gentle. "Please...I just want to make sure she's okay. I won't try to separate you, I promise." After a moment of internal debate, her fire lizard companion appeared on her shoulder, chirping excitedly.
"Bruni!"
Revontuli looked up at Arendelle's second queen as she called her companion's name, her eyes widening slightly as the little lizard immediately hurled himself off of her shoulder and ran through the fire, climbing the redhead's legs like a spiral staircase to nestle against her neck affectionately. The firefox looked at the scene with eyes softer than they had been moments before. After a few more encouraging chirps from her companion, she nodded in agreement. "Come. The flames will not harm you," she said gently. Anna took a deep breath to steel herself and began to walk forward before one of the soldiers grabbed a handful of her cape to stop her. "Your Majesty, you can't!" Anna turned and smiled reassuringly, placing her hand on the soldier's shoulder. "It's alright, Henrik. I don't know what's going on, but this woman gave her life for me and my sister. She would never hurt me." Revontuli's eyes widened at the redhead's words, turning to look down at the unconscious queen.
Is...is that how she died?
She looked up as the redhead took a deep breath and several long strides, crossing the magical flames unharmed, as the firefox promised. Anna released the breath she had been holding as she emerged in front of Revontuli, muttering under her breath. "Whew...now that was a crazy trust exercise..." When Revontuli's brow furrowed in confusion, she gave her a small, calming smile and walked forward slowly, her hands gently reaching toward the twitchy woman. "It's okay," she said reassuringly, placing one hand on Revontuli's shoulder and the other on Elsa's head. She gently brushed a wet lock of hair from her sleeping face before allowing her assessing gaze to scan her sister, taking in her injuries and immediately realizing how the balcony door had been broken. Teal eyes looked up in concern when the firefox hissed in pain, her eyes squeezing shut. When they opened again, the colors of twilight were receding, being replaced by a familiar chocolate brown.
"...Sugar Rush...?"
Anna's eyes welled with relieved tears, her hand on the dark-haired woman's shoulder moving to cup her face, laughing tearfully when Bruni ran from her shoulder and down her arm to return to his mistress, chirping excitedly. "That's right, Honeymaren. It's just me. Are you hurt?" The firefox shook her head to try to clear it and the redhead gasped as she saw the flashing of color in her eyes. "I can't...remember...every time someone from my other life touches me, it hurts..." Anna's eyes softened and she removed her hand instantly, looking around as her mind tried to work through the problem before something crucial occurred to her. "Does it hurt to be holding her?" When the woman didn't reply, Anna could only give a small, sad smile. "Of course it does. Yet still, I won't even bother to ask one of the soldiers to take her because you will never let her go."
She sighed softly before her shoulders squared, slipping into queen mode. "I can't imagine how much pain you are in or how confused you are right now, but we have to get Elsa inside. If she stays out here in this rain she's going to get sick. Do you think you can carry her back to her room? It's a long walk from here, but then we can get her fixed up and figure out this whole crazy situation, okay?" Revontuli looked up at the balcony of Elsa's bedroom and the ramp of ice that led up to it. "Will you keep the soldiers back?" she asked slowly, looking back to Anna. When she nodded, the firefox took a deep breath and allowed the ring of fire around her to die. She tensed when the dozens of men around her immediately began to advance before one sharp commanding motion from Anna's hand stopped them. From atop her shoulder, Bruni gave a series of authoritative chirps, holding himself high on his mistress's shoulder. She couldn't help but roll her eyes at her tiny companion before she smiled gratefully at the redhead, turning toward the ramp of ice.
She paused at the bottom of the creation and reached out to experimentally press her foot against the thick ice. Much to her delight, the sound of hissing steam reached her ears and she grinned despite the pain. She turned her head to look at Anna over her shoulder with a small smirk. "Not a long walk at all...Anna," she tested the name on her lips, forcing the pain from her face as she did. "Follow me." Without another word, Revontuli slowly began to make her way up the thick icy slide one careful footfall at a time. "We can take it from here. Take care of the trash on our lawn, if you will, Henrik," she heard Anna say in a voice thick with hatred before she felt the redhead's presence behind her following the path she forged.
In less than fifteen minutes and with the help of one of the maids, Anna was tucking Elsa snugly into her bed as the dark-haired woman moved to sit on the bed next to the sleeping queen. Anna and the maid had helped get Elsa dried and changed into a fresh nightdress while the fidgety fire maven paced outside of the bedroom, running entirely on instinct and adrenaline. Originally, it had been her idea to allow Anna and the maid to see to Elsa, insisting only that she herself bandage the few nasty cuts the blonde had sustained on her arms and legs from falling through the glass window, particularly the deep wound on her calf. Despite the strong feelings for the queen in her past life, she was a stranger to the woman and didn't feel right seeing her in a state of undress. Whatever relationship she once had with the spirit of winter no longer belonged to her – Elsa no longer belonged to her. She severely disliked being parted from her blonde charge and regretted the choice instantly, despite the small amount of relief from pain the distance provided.
It seemed that the pain was the sharpest when new memories pushed themselves to the forefront of her mind, eventually dimming to a dull ache. While creating physical distance from Elsa had brought some relief, the ache was steadily growing the longer she interacted with the beautiful queen. Her head felt like a geyser, the pressure building slowly and continuously and she knew it was only a matter of time before it would become unbearable, yet she knew it changed nothing. She would rather suffer this terrible agony than be parted with the sleeping goddess, and she would endure it with as much stoicism as possible for Elsa's sake.
Revontuli pulled the covers up to the sleeping woman's chin as she sat next to her on the bed with her back against the headboard, idly playing with the queen's hair as she told Anna her story. She told Anna everything, from waking up in the flower-laden canoe on the shores of an island of ice in the middle of the sea with no memory of who she was, to her bargain with Ahtohallan, and about her ability to glean premonitions of the future from her fire powers and how it had served her in this situation. The redhead listened intently from her place on Elsa's other side, wide-eyed and fascinated as Revontuli told her tale. When the firefox had finished, Anna tried to fill her in on most of the missing details but stopped when she realized a harrowing fact. Every time she recounted a piece of information having to do with the noaide of the past, the firefox of the present winced in a pain the redhead was certain was far greater than the stoic woman was letting on.
Silently making the connection between the dark-haired woman's pain and her missing memories, Anna instead told her of what happened after her death and all that she had saved with her sacrifice. She told Revontuli of how bravely Elsa had held herself together for the sake of the chaos around her. She told her of the funeral and the prayers Yelana had spoken and the honor bestowed upon her by the Spirits. When Revontuli quietly asked how Elsa had fared with the loss of her loved one, Anna fell silent for several long moments, gazing down at her sister sadly before answering with a slow shake of her head. Her teal gaze fell upon the firefox once more in silent contemplation before she asked the question Revontuli had been afraid to linger on for too long. "Revontuli...is...is Honeymaren still...in there? Are you a completely different person?"
The firefox exhaled slowly through her nose, twilight eyes falling on the beautiful sleeping goddess that had curled into her side at some point, snuggling against her contentedly. "Honestly, I don't know," she murmured, conflicted eyes rising to meet sympathetic teal pools. "I don't think so...I thought I was before last night, but the longer I remain close to her, the more convinced I am that is not the case. It feels too right to be here. I have no other desires but to be with her – I don't think I would feel this way if there was a different life waiting to be lived."
"Then..." Anna asked slowly as she looked into the dark-haired woman's eyes. "Are you Revontuli? Or are you Honeymaren?" The firefox fell quiet for a long moment as she mulled over the question before a soft, contented sigh escaped the sleeping queen and she turned in her sleep to lay her head against the dark-haired woman's thigh, a small, sleepy smile settling on her lips. Tan fingers ran through silky blonde locks and the firefox smiled lovingly down at the goddess, quietly answering Anna's question.
"I am Elsa's."
Anna beamed at the sight of the dark-haired woman and her peacefully sleeping sister. "That you are, dear friend. That, you are."
Both women fell into a peaceful, thoughtful silence for a long time as they watched the dawn begin to break. At one point, Anna began looking from the window to the firefox and back again. By the third glance, Revontuli chuckled, rolling her eyes a bit at the redhead's antics. "Might I help you with something, Your Majesty?" Anna blushed at having been noticed and fiddled with her fingers, though she smiled despite being caught. "Your eyes," she began, looking back up at her. "They keep changing color. Last night in the ballroom and back on the lawn, your eyes were the same color as the flames. A few hours ago, they were flashing back and forth between that and brown," she said, gesturing to the twilight clinging on before the first rays of dawn. "Now, they are mostly brown." Anna leaned close, squinting as she looked into the dark-haired woman's eyes. "Though there are still flecks of the color in there."
Revontuli's brow furrowed and she shrugged, instinctively leaning away from the redhead's suddenly far-too-close face – how was she supposed to know if her eyes were changing color? A quiet chirping from the balcony drew their attention and the firefox chuckled when she saw Bruni, now a light blue, trying to catch the last few cold raindrops of the storm on his tongue from the broken balcony door. "For a fire-lizard, he sure loves the cold," Anna said with a giggle. "He was always begging Elsa to make snow for him, like a dog at a table. Hey!" she said suddenly, turning to look at Revontuli. "Maybe that explains it!" When the firefox blinked in confusion and simply stared at Anna, the redhead rolled her eyes. "Bruni changes color when he cools down. Every time I saw your eyes get more colorful, you were using your magic. When you weren't and you were calm, they were that pretty bluish purple." Revontuli gave the redhead an impressed look, nodding in understanding and acceptance. "That makes sense. But what about the brown?" Anna rubbed her chin thoughtfully for a moment before looking uncertainly at her. "Honeymaren's eyes were that color brown. I saw them turn the same chocolate color when you recognized me. Maybe the fact that they're brown now means..."
Revontuli raised an eyebrow when the redheaded queen trailed off. "Go on," she urged gently. Anna bit her lip and looked at her with concern. "Maybe...it means that at this point, you are more Honeymaren than you are the firefox." The dark-haired woman nodded slowly as she digested that piece of likely true information, looking down as she continued to gently run her fingers through the soundly sleeping queen's hair. "You know," she began quietly. "I should probably be more upset about my identity being in flux - frightened even. But somehow, I'm not, " she admitted. "I felt the same way when Ahtohallan told me I would begin life anew. I think somehow I knew that, no matter what happened, everything would be okay once I found Elsa. Even though I didn't know how strongly I would feel about her until the other night."
Anna frowned slightly, something the firefox had said earlier piquing her interest. "You said something earlier like that – you said you knew last night that you were not a different person because of the way Elsa made you feel. When, exactly, did you start remembering who you were?" Revontuli blushed a bit, her free hand reaching up to scratch the back of her head abashedly. "I...may or may not have snuck in here the night after the ballroom incident," she admitted sheepishly. "The flames told me Ulrik would be making his move the next night, but I wasn't sure how or where so I waited until both of you were asleep before I sort of...broke in." She chanced a glance at Anna, expecting the redhead to make fun of her or chastise her for sneaking into the queen's bedroom and frowned when she saw tears welling in teal eyes as they stared not at her, but at her sleeping sister.
"Anna...?" she asked gently, dipping her head slightly to try to catch the redhead's gaze. "What's wrong?" The queen sniffled a bit, reaching out to gently tuck a lock of white-gold hair behind a pale ear. "Elsa knew you were in here...and I yelled at her," she whispered through her tears, reaching up to wipe them away angrily. "She begged me to believe her that you had been in the room and I yelled at her...I made her think she was crazy." Anna shook her head, trying to stifle the sobs that were threatening to build. "I'm a-"
"Wonderful sister," the dark-haired woman interrupted, smiling gently at Anna. The redhead looked up at her through watery teal eyes, disbelieving of her words but begging for reassurance that they were true. "Anna, no one could have predicted any of this in their wildest dreams. I'm the one that was brought back to life and I can scarcely believe it," she said with a chuckle, smiling when Anna gave a small laugh as well. "I don't remember too much yet, but what I do remember tells me clearly there is nothing you wouldn't do for Elsa – a loyalty and love you've proven over and again. You realize you basically rode an icicle down from a castle balcony to come to her aid, right?" Anna laughed again, smiling as she wiped at the remaining tears on her face.
And it was Honeymaren, not Revontuli who smiled in return, reaching with her hand to playfully tap Anna under the chin. "You're wonderful, Anna. You're a loving sister, a devoted queen, and a true friend. You should never see a reason to change anything that makes you those things." Just as Anna was about to reply, a soft knocking from the bedroom door sounded quietly through the room. Honeymaren instinctively placed a protective hand over Elsa's shoulder, pulling her imperceptibly closer as Anna stood and answered the door, careful to block the person's view of the room. She smiled at the young maid who curtsied before her. "Kari. I am tending to my sister. How can I help you?"
"Begging your pardon, Your Majesty. General Mattias has asked to speak with you about the events of last night before the council meets in a few hours."
Anna's eyes went wide and she smacked her forehead with her hand. "Oh my GODS, I haven't told General Mattias! Oooohhh, what am I gonna say?! He is going to absolutely freak out when-" she paused, glancing at the stunned young maid who stared in surprise at her sovereign, blinking confusedly. Anna cleared her throat, bringing herself under control. "I mean, yes, thank you, of course. I'll meet him in the throne room straightaway." The clear dismissal snapped the maid out of it, the young woman scurrying away after a quick curtsy, and Anna closed the door, leaning against it heavily. Honeymaren smirked in confused amusement at the redhead before she saw the young queen's face fall when she met her gaze.
"What am I going to do? If I tell him you're alive, nothing's going to stop him from coming to see you." Honeymaren raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Do...I not want to see this man?" Anna's eyes turned sad at that question and she sighed softly, running her fingers through her hair. "He's...been in your life a very long time, Honeymaren," she said, choosing her words carefully. "I'm guessing remembering him would cause you a great deal of pain. Plus..." she trailed off, pointing at the still sleeping queen. Honeymaren nodded in understanding. Though she seemed content at the moment, she had no idea how the emotionally frazzled woman would react when she woke up.
After a moment of silent contemplation, Anna put her fist to her open palm in a determined gesture, pushing away from the wall. "Breakfast. With chocolate croissants." She looked at Honeymaren for a moment and grinned. "And lefse," she added. Honeymaren blinked in confusion, tilting her head as she looked at the suddenly bubbly redhead. "Eh?" was all she could manage in reply. Anna smiled and walked to the other side of the bed, leaning over and planting a loving kiss to her sister's temple before walking back around and doing the same to Honeymaren. She smiled apologetically at the wince that followed before walking back to the door. "I'm going to go ask the cooks to make us a nice, big breakfast and bring it back here. We are likely going to need to have a long, emotional discussion when Elsa wakes up and it shouldn't be done on an empty stomach," she said with an authoritative nod, as though her logic could not possibly be questioned. "I'll have a quick discussion with General Mattias and give him the abridged version of last night's events until we decide how to go about reintroducing you into the kingdom."
Honeymaren forced a smile on her face and nodded in agreement with Anna's plan, the redhead throwing a wink at her before she left the room and shut the door quietly behind her. Finally alone with her thoughts, the dark-haired woman frowned a bit, mulling over the optimistic picture in the redhead's mind. Ahtohallan had told her once her task was completed, she was to return to the island of ice where she would have to choose between living out her new life as the firefox or give it up and go to her eternal rest. She had yet to think of a reason why she would ever choose the latter, but something deep within her told her the choice would not be an easy one at all.
A gentle shifting from the goddess sleeping against her instantly had Honeymaren's heart racing impossibly fast. As the queen began to slowly come around, the dark-haired woman suddenly found herself more nervous than she could ever recall being, even with some of her memories returning to her. Elsa stretched her legs out, sighing softly at the pleasant feeling and cuddled closer to the warm body next to her, laying her head in Honeymaren's lap and draping her hand across her leg before falling still again. The dark-haired woman dare not breathe, her heart conflicted – her mind desperately hoped the queen would fall back asleep so she could think of the plan she had so foolishly overlooked making for this moment, yet her heart and soul screamed to be reunited with the goddess of winter, the very reason for both her life and her death. Honeymaren suddenly felt the body snuggled into her tense and become very still. She held her breath, watching the queen's face.
When the queen opened her eyes and slowly lifted them up to gaze at her through thick, dark lashes, time slowed and the rest of the world ceased to exist for Honeymaren. So lost she was in those beautiful pools of blue that not even the skull-splitting pain she was only dully aware of could find her. Nothing existed on this plane but this remarkable goddess and her – the rest of the world simply fell away as she gazed into sleepy blue pools filled with awe and wonder...
Only to come crashing down upon her harshly and at full speed when they widened, swirling with confusion, fear...and pain. So much pain...
Elsa jerked away from her, quickly scooting backward across the bed in alarm. "No..." the blonde whispered, one hand covering her horrified expression, eyes that she now knew she loved beyond anything in this world filling with tears as she stared at the dark-haired woman in dismay. Honeymaren very slowly held her hands up in a placating gesture. "It's alright, Snowflake-" she tried, but was cut off when Elsa let out a strangled sob the moment she started speaking. "No, no, NO!" Elsa cried, scrambling off the bed and stumbling a few feet away. "I can't do this again, I can't, I CAN'T!" she shouted as she began to break down, covering her face with her hands as she slowly started sinking to the ground. "Wake up, wake up, wake up..." she whimpered to herself.
Honeymaren was at her side in a flash, her warm hands holding Elsa's shoulders to keep her upright, trying to get the panicking queen to look at her. "Baby, it's okay, I'm right here-" Elsa shook her head vehemently as her breaths came in quick pants. "No! You're not real...you...y-you're just a dream," she whimpered. "You're not here...not here..." she whispered over and over, shaking her head as her whole body trembled. Honeymaren used her grip on the blonde's shoulders to guide the distraught woman to sit on the bed and knelt in front of her. She gently grasped Elsa's cold, shaking hands in hers and pulled them away from her face, blue eyes shut away from her by tightly closed eyelids. "Look at me, Elsa," she implored gently, releasing one of Elsa's hands to gently cup her cheek. The winter spirit sobbed harder, the queen's tears falling harder than the rain did hours earlier even as she pressed her shaking hand against the one on her cheek desperately.
Just then, Elsa's bedroom door opened and a proudly smiling Anna pushed in a cart filled with an assortment of breakfast delicacies. The smile instantly fell from her face as she realized what she had just walked into. She quickly turned to close the door behind her and ran to kneel at Honeymaren's side. Honeymaren gave her a helpless look, unsure what she should do as she tried to break through to Elsa again. "Snowflake...open your eyes, baby...just look at me, please," she begged. Slowly, the winter spirit opened her eyes, her tearful gaze landing on Honeymaren's concerned, twilight flecked eyes. "What are you?" she whimpered in an almost inaudible whisper. "A spirit? A ghost sent to torment me?" Honeymaren's face fell at the agony she saw in the queen's eyes, her mouth opening and closing as she tried to find her voice.
"Els, sweetheart, it's really her...it's Honeymaren. Ahtohallan brought her back to you," Anna said gently through her own tears. "No," Elsa whimpered, closing her eyes tightly once more and shaking her head vehemently. "You can't be real, you CAN'T...I can't do this, I-I won't survive waking from this dream again, I...I..." she whispered helplessly. Honeymaren pulled her hand back from the queen's cheek and loosened the ties in front of the airy black shirt she wore to reveal her collarbone and upper chest. Immediately, she pulled the hand she still held captive forward and placed it against her heart, holding it there firmly, her other reaching up once more to thread her fingers through the thick locks just above Elsa's neck, guiding the queen to look at her. "Open your eyes, Snowflake," she implored hoarsely.
"Can you feel that?" she asked when watery blue eyes slowly opened, locking with hers. Her other hand tightened its hold when Elsa tried to look away, not allowing the queen to break her gaze. "This isn't a dream. I'm alive. I'm flesh and blood and warmth, right here in front of you, safe and sound...and I'm not going anywhere," she vowed confidently. Elsa shakily reached out with her free hand, her trembling fingertips barely ghosting Honeymaren's cheek as she wept. "Is it really you...?" Honeymaren nodded emphatically, untangling her hand from Elsa's hair to press the queen's cold, tentative hand against her warm cheek as her own tears began to fall.
Elsa's breathing quickened, her face crumbling as she began to lean forward. "Maren..." she sobbed loudly and fell forward from the bed and into her lover's waiting arms, winding her own tightly around Honeymaren's neck and clinging to her for dear life as she came undone. The queen buried her face in the crook of Honeymaren's neck and wept openly and loudly, calling her beloved's name over and over as she released a month's worth of agony and fear through tears that never seemed to end. Honeymaren sat back and pulled the sobbing goddess into her lap, protectively cradling her against her and rocking her soothingly back and forth. She glanced to her side to see Anna weeping silently, her face a mixture of heartbreak and joy as she watched the lovers reunite. The redhead smiled lovingly at Honeymaren and made to leave to give them privacy when Honeymaren's hand shot out and grasped hers. She looked down at the hand that held hers and then to its owner, Honeymaren giving her hand a grateful squeeze that said far more than words ever could. Anna smiled again and squeezed back with a nod of understanding before whispering to her. "I'll be back in a short while," she promised before leaving the room and closing the door quietly behind her.
It could have been minutes or hours that they stayed like that, Honeymaren gently caressing the blonde and murmuring soothingly to her before Elsa finally calmed enough that she was able to speak. She pulled back from her lover's embrace just enough to cup her face in her hands, staring deep into Honeymaren's eyes with cautious hope. They stayed that way for several minutes as Honeymaren allowed the fragile queen to examine her, pale fingers lightly stroking and caressing as they traced her features in disbelieving awe. "You came back to me," she whispered in a voice so quiet Honeymaren almost couldn't hear it, afraid if she spoke too loud the spell would be broken. Her pale brow furrowed as her thumbs brushed under Honeymaren's eyes and across her cheekbones. "Your eyes..." Honeymaren smiled a bit and nodded in understanding. "I know. The color, right? Anna mentioned it to me. We think we've figured out why, but-" Honeymaren was silenced when Elsa's fingers pressed against her full lips and she blinked at the concern in Elsa's eyes. "You're in pain," she stated quietly after a moment. "I can feel it..."
Honeymaren exhaled quietly through her nose, debating playing it off to comfort the queen before thinking better of it. She told Elsa the story of what had happened with Ahtohallan and waking up with no memory of where or what or who she was. She explained about her new abilities and that it had been her that had brought Hans in. At the hurt look on her lover's face, she quickly reassured Elsa she still had no idea who she was at that point or she would have revealed herself right then and there. She bashfully confessed she had been in Elsa's room the night before and that touching her is what caused the memories to start flooding her mind.
"From what I have experienced so far and based on what Ahtohallan told me, some words, some touches, some objects from my past release memories and the memories are what causes the pain. The more...emotion that is attached to it, the more it hurts. When I saw your ring on your finger the other night...by the Spirits, I thought my head was going to explode," she admitted. She looked up at the crestfallen look on the queen's face and frowned in concern. Just as she was about to ask what was wrong, Elsa slowly pulled her hands away, albeit with a clear reluctance - as though it was just as physically painful for her to pull away as it was for Honeymaren to touch her. "Don't you dare," Honeymaren whispered as she covered one of Elsa's retreating hands with her own, turning to press a soft kiss into her palm and eliciting a quiet, breathy laugh of relief from the queen. "Not touching you would bring me far more agony than anything in this world ever could," she said earnestly.
Elsa's bottom lip began to quiver ever so slightly, crystal blue eyes becoming glassy with renewed tears at her love's words. She wrapped her arms around her neck once more and buried her face into dark tresses. "I've missed you...so much," Elsa whispered, tightening her arms around Honeymaren. The dark-haired woman smiled and held the queen tightly, turning her head to murmur comfortingly in the queen's ear. "I'm here now, Snowflake. And I'm never leaving you again." Honeymaren pulled back and kissed the blonde fiercely, pouring every ounce of love and reassurance and longing she had from both of her lives into that one kiss. She was instantly in agony, but as she felt Elsa's fingers thread desperately through her thick locks and heard the queen's relieved, emotional whimper against her lips, Honeymaren found she didn't give a damn about the pain.
Honeymaren reflexively pulled Elsa tightly against her as memory after memory of her lips touching the winter goddess flashed in her mind; capturing the queen's lips with her own to silence her fears and banish the demons of the queen's mind, soothing brushes of firefly kisses across her face and forehead as she lulled her to sleep, playful nips at her neck and collarbone that made the queen laugh with glee or moan in pleasure. All of these moments careened to the forefront of her mind as tears of exulting joy and excruciating pain mixed together and through it all, she held Elsa ever closer.
She distantly heard Elsa whimper again, only realizing how different it sounded when she felt the blonde pull away, taking the pain-numbing elation with her. "Maren, stop," Elsa panted, her hands falling from Honeymaren's hair to her shoulders and pushing gently to create a few precious inches of distance between them as the dark-haired woman grit her teeth and groaned in the aftermath of the pain, light beads of sweat forming on her brow as she tried to breathe through it. "I-I can feel it," Elsa breathed, looking worriedly into her love's pain-clouded eyes. "How can you stand it...?" It took Honeymaren a long moment to be able to speak, slowly shaking her head. "I...don't know if I can much longer," she admitted, looking into anxious blue pools.
A soft, rhythmic knocking at the door pulled their minds from the darkening mood slightly, both women glancing at the door. Honeymaren leaned forward and captured Elsa's lips again in a soft, tender kiss before the queen could protest, grinning at the quiet gasp as the queen instinctively melted into her. She pulled away before Elsa had the chance to, placing her lips next to the blonde's ear and whispering gently. "It will always be worth it." With a quick kiss to her temple and a playful grin, Honeymaren pulled back slightly and called out for Anna. "Come on in, Sugar Rush. You promised this beautiful woman chocolate croissants!"
Anna opened the door with a bright smile on her face and laughed a little when she saw Elsa still in the fire mage's lap on the floor, cuddled as close as possible to her. "Are we going to use the furniture or are we having a floor picnic?" Honeymaren grinned up at the redhead. "I think I'd prefer a bed picnic," she said playfully before she slipped her arms beneath the winter spirit's legs and hips and rocked forward to her knees. Honeymaren laughed when Elsa squeaked in surprise and wrapped her arms around her neck tightly as she stood in a smooth, fluid motion. The dark-haired woman frowned slightly at how light the blonde felt in her arms. Elsa had always been rather dainty, but despite many of her memories still being hazy Honeymaren was sure she had never been this light. She bit back a forlorn sigh, nuzzling Elsa's temple gently as Anna went about making the bed for them to sit on. Anna had described to her how her death had been difficult on the winter spirit and she wondered what other confirmations she would discover of just how much of a toll it had taken on the queen.
"You shouldn't try to walk too much, Snowflake," she said gently as she carefully deposited Elsa onto the made surface of the bed, arranging a couple of pillows comfortably behind her while Anna went about removing all of the lids keeping the food on the cart warm. She grabbed a thicker pillow and used it to prop Elsa's right leg up, pulling her nightgown up to her knee to show the queen the bandages wrapped around her leg, pristine white against her skin save for the dark red streak along the side of her calf. "You took a pretty nasty fall through that door. You have a few smaller cuts, but this one was pretty deep," she explained as she carefully ran her warm hand along her leg and down to her foot, smiling gently and giving her foot a loving squeeze.
"I'll be fine, thanks to you," she said softly with a reassuring smile, touching the empty space in the bed next to her with a pleading look in her eyes. Honeymaren smiled brightly and stood, walking around the bed to help Anna load up a large tray with a filling breakfast. Toast layered with scrambled eggs and smoked salmon, thick pieces of cheese and ham, and an assortment of breakfast pastries, all of which contained chocolate of some kind. Honeymaren carried the tray to the bed and set it down carefully before sitting next to the queen while Anna brought over three glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice. Elsa immediately scooted closer to the dark-haired woman, pressing against her side firmly. Honeymaren smiled softly and leaned over to place a soft kiss atop the blonde's head, understanding the queen's need for the reassurance of physical contact with her. If she were honest with herself, Elsa was not the only one of them who needed it.
Anna beamed happily at the two and grabbed a chocolate croissant, holding it out to Elsa. The queen blinked at the pastry, looking up at Anna and taking it slowly, a light blush filling her cheeks at her sister's bright grin. She was saved from her shyness when an excited chirping from the balcony drew everyone's attention to the little fire lizard as he poked his head in. "Smelled the eggs, didn't you, you gluttonous thing," Honeymaren said with a laugh as he raced across the room and up the bedpost, perching atop Honeymaren's head and leaning over to stare at the egg-covered piece of toast in her hand, chirping excitedly and licking his lips. Honeymaren went cross-eyed when Bruni leaned forward even more, one of his tiny front feet pushing down on her eyebrow, the other perching on the end of her nose as he crept closer to the delicious treat she had been about to put in her mouth. "Yes, I know you love them and I always share with you, but you're being incredibly rude. Did you even say hi to Elsa or Anna yet, you little vermin?" Honeymaren looked up at the two sisters, blinking at the looks of open surprise on their faces. "...what?" she asked uncertainly.
"You can...he speaks to you?" Elsa asked with wonder, gasping as Bruni excitedly threw himself at the winter spirit, as though only just now realizing she was finally no longer sleeping as she had been every other time he had seen her. She dropped her croissant in an effort to catch the flying little lizard in her palms, juggling him back and forth until his hot flames cooled against the skin of her palms and his color changed to a light blue. Honeymaren nodded, smiling at the pair. "Yeah. I can hear him just like you, now that Ahtohallan gave me the power of fire." Elsa eye's flicked between the lizard and Honeymaren as the dark-haired woman offered him a bit of egg, yelping slightly when he nearly took her finger off with it. Anna laughed unabashedly as Honeymaren shook out her hand before putting her finger in her mouth. "Greedy little son of a..." she grumbled in annoyance under her breath as she sucked on the tip of her finger, glaring at him all the while. "...thrice-damned lizard..."
Elsa couldn't help but giggle at her lover's antics, her heart feeling lighter than it had in what felt like an eternity. She handed a happily chewing Bruni to her broadly grinning sister before reaching out to grasp Honeymaren's hand with her own, bringing the injured fingertip to her lips and placing a cold, soft kiss to it, smiling at her with shining blue eyes full of love. The dark-haired woman smiled back at her, unable to stop herself from leaning forward and claiming Elsa's healing lips with her own. She was forced to break the kiss far sooner than she would have liked as she hissed softly and winced, squeezing her eyes tightly against the pain in her head. The sisters looked at each other helplessly for a moment as Honeymaren tried to breathe through it.
"Elsa," Anna asked called quietly. "What are we going to do?" Elsa chewed her bottom lip for a moment, hating the prospect in her mind but knowing it was the only real chance they had at ending her lover's pain. "We have to go to Ahtohallan," she said quietly, brushing her fingers through Honeymaren's hair gently in what she hoped was a soothing gesture. "This is her doing. She can fix it." Honeymaren's pain-filled eyes opened to meet Elsa's, unspoken worry shining in them. "But she said when I came back to her, I would have to make a choice...Elsa, I don't think it's going to be as simple as it sounds," she ground out through the pain. Blue eyes suddenly became hard with determination, her hands cupping her lover's face and holding her gaze. "You were stolen from me once. I won't let anything take you from me ever again – god or demon. She will find a way."
"What if she doesn't, Elsa?" Anna asked worriedly, sympathetic eyes trained on Honeymaren. Elsa placed a cool, soothing hand across Honeymaren's forehead that was now slightly damp with sweat from the agony in her head and the dark-haired woman closed her eyes in relief. "Then she will find herself my enemy, and Ahtohallan will learn the old saying is true," she said quietly. Anna looked away from Honeymaren to her older sister, her brow furrowing in concern and confusion. "What saying is that?" Crystalline eyes full of steely determination met Anna's gaze across the bed.
"Demons run when a good person goes to war...for Heaven hath no rage like love to hatred turned."
AN:
Personally, I wouldn't mess with an angry Elsa in a dark alley.
Hell, I probably wouldn't mess with her in broad daylight, either.
I want to say thanks again for the incredible amount of support you all have given me. Your wonderful reviews light a fire in my soul and make me want to write many many more stories that will hopefully repay the love you have shown me.
Thank you thank you thank you!
-Volchise