Note:

Oh my Gooooood. Chapter twelve was way too long and I had to break it up AGAIN. Ugh. Anyway – at least it keeps me updating. Chapter thirteen should be up before Saturday.

[x] Song: "Draw You In", MOZAIA (from her album "HONEYJAY", 2023) – honestly, I really think this is Tina's singing voice. There's another singer that will come up, but MOZAIA is definitely a strong contender.

Disclaimer:

I do not own Frozen or the songs that I cite for this story.

All songs will be referenced in the notes. Also, please see the end of the chapter for terms used in this chapter***

Happy Reading!

- JQ

Chapter Twelve: Feelings and All That

[x]

It had been five days since Tina went up to the North Mountain with Elsa and the others. The brunette couldn't really place the feeling, but she could feel that Elsa seemed to be...acting differently. It wasn't an unusual kind of 'different', she just realized that the blonde would look at her a little longer and space out a bit more. While she was attracted to the ice wielder (immensely so), she had meant what she told Anna; that she would back off and ease off of the flirting. She was supposed to get married before the end of the year and would have no use for a whirlwind romance. Unfortunately, while she seemed to lighten up on her flirtations, Elsa seemed to be giving off advances of her own. The blonde wouldn't shy away from glances anymore and she wouldn't back away from physical contact as quickly as she used to. Sure, her eyes still gave away that she was nervous beyond compare, but her physical reactions to Tina seemed to stop retreating. Being someone who had been in – uh – relationships (if you can call them that) with women, Tina knew the tell-tale signs of attraction.

This was bad.

Ingrid and Gunn-Britt encouraged her to relax and enjoy it, but she just couldn't. They told her that she could indulge in a little bit of fun before leaving, which Tina agreed with. The problem was that with Elsa being – well, Elsa – Tina knew that her heart would get too caught up in things and not let this 'thing' die down peacefully. She hadn't ever felt so drawn to someone before. Elsa was intelligent, shy, a little bit of a dork, and someone she could talk to without any reservations. Growing up, she had her sisters, Ingrid, Arnold, and Gunn-Britt to bounce ideas off of and hang out with. While she loved them all immensely, they weren't exactly great for long conversations about the world. And then there was Elsa: a strong and beautiful woman, who led her kingdom despite her hardship and tribulations. Her reputation was definitely something to be revered, but her personality just made Tina's heart melt.

The brunette groaned in frustration and fell onto her guest bed. She needed to put an end to her madness.

Today, Elsa had planned for them to go to a local tavern to hear some amateur poetry. It was something that she enjoyed, while she was Queen, and she thought that Tina would love to accompany her. While the princess did like the idea, this plan was made a week prior – way before things started getting more intense in the 'feelings department'. Tina kept trying to think of ways around being in close proximity with the blonde, alone. She knew that she was falling fast (if she hadn't already done so), and she needed to put a stop to it.

The brunette raced to the mirror to try and find a way to make herself less appealing. She always wore her hair down, so she figured that she should put it up in a bun. Halfway through doing that, she realized her mistake – more neck equals more skin. Additionally, putting her hair up would signify that this outing was a 'special event', as she always wore her hair down. She didn't want to give off that impression! She groaned and let her hair fall down again.

It's no use, she thought to herself, I'm too appealing!

Before she could freak out any further, there was a knock at her guestroom door.

"Come in," Tina yelled, trying not to sound as if she wasn't panicking. She ran her hands down her skirt to smooth it out and willed herself to not look like she had been tossing around in her bed, freaking out about today's plans.

"Hey, Tee!" Arnold said, in his singsong voice.

"Yo." Ingrid greeted, shutting the door behind her and Arnold.

Tina was happy to see her friends but noticed one was missing. "Where's Gunn-Britt?"

Arnold groaned. "She's with that Ryder guy – something about herding reindeer."

"Well, at least she's making friends." Laughing, the princess just shook her head and turned back towards the mirror. She sighed as she ran her hands nervously through her dark brown hair. Noticing her brisk change in demeanor, Arnold and Ingrid started to inch towards Tina.

"You okay, Tee?" Ingrid asked carefully.

"Yeah," Arnold added, "you look very...uncharacteristic right now."

Tina debated on fighting them on their suspicions, but she was just too tired to. She sighed and walked over to her bed and flopped down on it – face first. She groaned rather loudly into the bedding, but it sounded very muffled and distorted. Ingrid and Arnold shared a knowing look and made their way over to Tina. Arnold laid down on his back, on one side of Tina, while Ingrid mirrored his position on the other side of her.

"Tell us what's wrong, girl." Ingrid prodded.

Tina answered, but her words were still being absorbed by the bedding.

"We can't hear you, Tina." Arnold said, "At least groan twice for 'yes' and groan once for 'no'." following his suggestion was two consecutive grunts. "That's better. Okay – Ingrid? You start."

"Ugh – fine." Ingrid adjusted herself so that she was propped up on one arm while facing the princess. "Does this have something to do with breakfast?"

One groan.

"Damn. Arnold – your turn."

The advisor cleared his throat. "Does this have to do with your injuries?"

One groan.

"What about...your feelings?" the handmaiden tried, "Like...emotions and junk?"

Two groans.

"Yes!" Ingrid cheered, "You suck, Arnold."

The advisor just rolled his eyes. "Do these emotions have to do with your upcoming wedding?"

There was no groan, but Tina lifted her had and motioned it as if to say 'kind of'.

"Okay, I'll take it." Arnold said.

"Does..." Ingrid began, trying to think of her next question, "...does this have to do with a...science-related problem?"

The princess didn't do anything for a few seconds. Ultimately, she ended up groaning twice.

Arnold sighed. "Is this about Elsa?"

Tina began to dramatically groan, as if to mimic sobbing.

"That isn't a correct response to our game, but I'll take it as a 'yes'." he said, patting the brunette's hair. "Poor, Tina – poor love-struck princess..."

More groaning sobs.

"Well – what's the issue?" Ingrid asked, "Like, we already knew it would be forbidden. We knew you couldn't, like, pursue it fully."

"Yeah," Arnold scoffed, "like I had stated before."

"Not the time, Arnold." Ingrid admonished. "Not the time."

Tina then rolled herself over dramatically. "I think she's mirroring my affections!" she wailed, flailing around like a fish out of water. Arnold and Ingrid just raised their eyebrows at her.

"...and?" Ingrid asked. She was rather confused, considering that the purpose of liking someone was to have hope that they liked you back.

The princess groaned. "I just wanted to be flirty! But now, she's being flirty back!"

Arnold and Ingrid just stared at one another, at a loss for words. The advisor then tried to carefully interject, "So...you're upset because...Elsa may actually like you back?"

"YES!" Tina cried out, pulling her hair. "Yes – that's exactly it!" she sat up and wrapped her arms around herself for comfort. "I-I didn't intend for her to return my feelings! I just wanted to have my fun and go to Sweden! Now I have to leave and in turn, leave behind a beautiful woman that cannot possibly surpass any man!" the brunette then looked over at Arnold. "...No offence, Arnie."

"None taken..." he sighed in response.

"Well, what if – like – you just told her this when she advances more?" Ingrid supplied. Tina just shook her head.

"Because I don't want to! I don't want to turn away her advances!" she sighed and lowered her head into her hands. "I want to be with her."

Ingrid and Arnold sighed sadly and they pulled the princess into a group hug. They had seen Tina distraught before, but this situation was a little more complex than others had been. She didn't want to get married to King Karl, but without it, Botarskal and Vennesvurg risked damaged relations which would not be great for either kingdom.

"Well..." Arnold said, cutting through the tension, "perhaps she doesn't actually return your affections." he suggested, "Maybe she is just getting comfortable around you!" he figured that reasoning this way would calm his friend down and prohibit her from jumping to any more conclusions.

"Yeah!" the handmaiden agreed, "Like, Anna told you that Elsa was always socially awkward right?" Ingrid asked while Tina just nodded. "So there's your answer! She's just, like, learning to trust you, or whatever! You don't have to worry about her making any moves!"

The princess just nodded and leaned her head against Arnold's shoulder. Yes; that had to be it. Tina was just jumping ahead of herself, like Katla always warns her not to do. She inhaled sharply and released a long breath. She was just being paranoid and letting her emotions get a hold of her – there was no way that Elsa would be feeling this way after nearly two decades worth of being fine on her own.

...

Elsa was panicking as she paced the length of her bedroom. She had been dreaming of amber eyes and warm dark chocolate brown hair for about five days now.

How on earth had she developed such an interest in a stranger so soon? A woman, nonetheless! She had gone most of her life without experiencing this kind of madness before. Granted – she was focused on controlling her powers and not killing everyone by accident – but it was still something she thought she could go her entire life without experiencing. She had her sister; she had her brother-in-law; she had Nolan and Stella; she had her friends; she had her...snow...children? Snow-children? Whatever – she had everything she could have ever asked for.

She was the fifth spirit.

She didn't need Tina.

She didn't need a love interest.

Love interest?

Oh no...

That's what this was wasn't it?

No, no, no, no –!

That's what they called it in the fiction novels. Gods, why couldn't they be just called 'interests' or...literally anything else?!

"No...no...no it can't – no, it can't be –!" Elsa said aloud, wringing her hands through her hair maniacally. She couldn't be thinking about romantic love! She just couldn't! And why did it even matter, anyway? Tina was supposed to get married at the end of the year! None of this was supposed to happen – none of this makes any sense!

How am I supposed to keep it together when we hang out today?!

Elsa could feel her emotions getting the best of her and she felt the room get a little colder. She stood still and started to take some calming breaths to still her racing heart and mind. She willed herself to calm down but a knock on the door was enough to change the course of her thoughts. She quickly did her hair up in a low ponytail – as she usually did for when she was stressed and not exactly caring about what she looked like to anyone.

Instead of shouting 'come in', like a regular person, Elsa went up to the door and carefully cracked it open. Gerda was standing on the other side, looking as unaffected as she usually did.

"Your Highness," she began, "Her Majesty, your sister, has requested your presence in her study."

Elsa nervously shifted from one foot to the other. "O-Okay. Um, thank you, Gerda. Tell her I'll be there shortly." the head servant gave pause to eyeball Elsa carefully. No doubt she noticed the princess' choice of hairdo and was trying to read her. Elsa and Anna could never get anything passed Gerda, even on a bad day.

"Of course, dear." Gerda said suspiciously. "I shall send for you, if Queen Anna is to tell me that you didn't attend." the older woman knew that the best way to get Elsa out of a funk was to get her to talk to Anna, so she took this instruction very seriously. Before she walked away from the door, the head servant looked back at Elsa, over her shoulder. "Please do not make Her Majesty request for you twice in one afternoon." as she walked away, the blonde woman swallowed the lump in her throat.

She wasn't entirely sure about what Anna wanted, but she hoped that she could sneak in a question or two about...romantic feelings. If anyone could help her out, she knew it would be her sister.

...

"...so then I started thinking 'why would Lord Gavin have beef with Duchess Holstein?' None of it really made sense to me, especially after Gerkenshire's harvest festival." Anna explained, sitting at her desk, "No matter what answer I come up with, I still have no idea how to handle correspondence to both offices, without insinuating that I agree with the Duchess!" Anna finished, flailing her hands around wildly. Elsa couldn't believe she broke her mental breakdown for political gossip.

"You called me in for this?" Elsa groaned, "This isn't even news! Gavin and Holstein hated one another before I was sixteen. Gerkenshire and Salldenfall have always been fine, despite Lord Gavin and Duchess Holstein's feud. I've told you this so many times – you don't have to put yourself in the middle, Anna."

The redhead just groaned and placed her face in her hands. "But they both invited me to a weekend at their respective children's parties!"

Right, Elsa thought, Anna was more social and was more prone to be involved in these kinds of issues.

The blonde just shook her head. "Just tell them both you will be unavailable that weekend." Elsa suggested, "It always worked for me."

"Yeah – but I never turn down stuff like this!"

"Well, maybe you should start."

Anna groaned again. "Maybe." the redhead then tossed both invitations away from her. "Maybe I can just bribe Tina to have her wedding that weekend – then I can turn down everyone." she obviously meant it as a joke, but the reminder that Tina was getting married sent Elsa into a bit of a spiral. Unfortunately, Anna was too wrapped up in the paperwork on her desk to notice. "Well, thanks for trying. I think I will just turn down both of them," when she turned back to face Elsa, Anna finally clocked into the fact that her sister was hugging herself, like she does when she's afraid. "Elsa?" Anna asked carefully, "What's the matter?"

Just ask her, Elsa screamed at herself, Ask her about what to do!

"Um...well..." the ice wielder had no idea where to begin. She didn't even know what to say. What if Anna became cross with her? What if she banished her from the castle because she felt this way about a woman? Wait – no – this was all a bad idea. A very, very bad idea.

"Elsa?" Anna tried again, "Please talk to me. What's wrong?"

"N-Nothing's wrong!" Elsa said, trying to appear jovial and not in a panic at all. "I-I just wanted – uh – your opinion on – um – dinner...spots?"

Anna crossed her arms over her chest while eyeing her sister quizzically. "...dinner spots?"

"Yes!" Elsa said all too loudly, "I am going with Tina to watch some amateur poetry! As friends." she laughed nervously under her sister's gaze, but kept going. "I know it's in Halima's tavern, so there's food there – um – but, if y-you had a-a-any other ideas I-I'd love to – uh – hear them...?"

Anna wanted to pry further, but she didn't think she had any time. She eyed the clock on her wall and huffed – she was right. Any second now, Kai was going to barge in and alert her of her appointment with Arendelle's Agricultural Commission.

"Well...there's this bed n' breakfast closer to the docks. It's called Siegfried's Inn." Anna suggested, watching her sister carefully, "After high noon, it doubles as a pub and they have some of the best kjøttkaker that Kristoff swears he's ever had." distracting herself, the redhead then began to try and remember other details. "I'm not sure if he's ever brought me some, but I believe that man's stomach."

"Are we sure?" Elsa asked with genuine fear, "Remember the Troll soup he made for Christmas, that one time?"

Anna laughed and just gave a small shrug. "Yeah...yeah that wasn't the best...but, but, but – he's not cooking the food!" the sisters laughed a little and just as expected, there was a knock at the door.

"Your Majesty," Kai called, from the other side of the closed door, "your meeting with Lord Claussen and Lady Morstad is in ten minutes, in the parlour."

Anna groaned, "Yes – thank you Kai!" the redhead then looked at her sister with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Elsa – I have to go. I hope you and Tina have fun today! You have to promise to tell me about all of it!"

Elsa swallowed the lump in her throat. "O-Okay..."

The blonde was still feeling terribly about her confidence for today. She still didn't have any indication of what to do. Sighing, she bid her sister farewell and went for a walk to try and clear her head out.

...

Elsa's walk had eventually taken her to the stables, in the castle's courtyard. She was planning to be alone, with her thoughts, while petting the animals when she discovered that she would – in fact – not be alone. Just outside of the stables was a group of six reindeer, plus Sven. Leaning against the stable doors were Ryder, Gunn-Britt, Kristoff, and Olaf. The ice wielder just smiled and waved at them as she began to make her way towards where they were.

"Hey guys," the blonde greeted, "What are we all doing out here?"

Kristoff was the first to speak. He looked tired and annoyed as he pointed towards Gunn-Britt and Ryder. "Those two have been arguing since after breakfast." he stated.

"Really?" Elsa said looking between the large woman and the reindeer herder, "What for?"

"Well," Ryder began with his signature mischievous tone, "Gunn-Britt, over here, seems to think she can best me in a reindeer herding competition."

"Wrong, little man." Gunn-Britt corrected, "I said that your skills would be no match for yak herding."

Ryder crossed his arms over his chest, "Well then why don't we try out some reindeer – surely you can handle it."

"No." Gunn-Britt said, "To herd anything lower in status to yaks would be a massive dishonour to my bloodline. I herd yaks or nothing at all." the two began to bicker while Elsa just observed. While this was happening, no one noticed Kristoff and his existential crisis.

"Can someone PLEASE tell me what is up with her and yaks?!" again, everyone was too engrossed in other things. Fortunately, Olaf patted Kristoff on his leg to get his attention.

"I think she just likes yaks!" the snowman said simply. Kristoff groaned and continued to try and wrap his head Gunn-Britt's yak obsession.

"...so, there!" Ryder said, in a definitive tone, "If we are both ever in the same place, surrounded by yaks – as if – then we can have a 'yak herding' competition!"

Gunn-Britt grunted neutrally at his proposal. "Fine." she stated, "But we will have to abide by the Yak Herders' Code for standard rules."

"Whatever," Ryder said nonchalantly, "I'm sure it won't make a difference."

The large woman huffed. "I am also sure it will not."

"We should call it something – just to make it special." Ryder suggested. "I know! Let's call it 'Ryder and Gunn-Britt's Yak Off!"

"PFFFFFFFFT!" Kristoff doubled over in laughter at the suggestion his friend made. Olaf had no idea why everything was funny, so he just mirrored Kristoff and laughed until he couldn't feel his sides.

Elsa blushed furiously and covered her face with her hand. "Ryder – I think you guys need a new name."

"Why?" he asked, genuinely perplexed. "What's wrong with it?"

"It satisfies all necessary descriptions for competitions under the Yak Herder's Code." Gunn-Britt defended.

Elsa inhaled sharply through her nose and just shook her head. She couldn't stop herself from cringing but she also couldn't bring herself to explain why the name was...less than suitable.

...

After Ryder had taken off with Olaf, Gunn-Britt, Sven, and the other reindeer (something about going out to graze on real grass), Kristoff and Elsa were left in the stables. She decided to help him clean up Sven's 'room', so she swept up old hay and replaced it with a newer pile. After refilling Sven's water trough, Kristoff noticed that Elsa was quieter than usual. He didn't spend that much time with her, but he knew that it was odd for her to not say anything to him – they had known one another for nine years now, and she was apart of his family.

"Are you good over there, Elsa?" Kristoff asked, turning to face her.

"Oh? Me?" Elsa replied. Even though she had been around him this whole time, she still looked shocked to be spoken to.

"Uh...yes? Your name is 'Elsa', right?" the ice harvester teased.

Elsa laughed slightly. "Yeah, yeah – sorry." she nervously began playing with the tips of her ponytail. "I'm fine, Kris. Thanks." Although he was awkward most of the time, Kristoff wasn't buying any of her words right now.

"You sure?" He tried again, "You know – well – I know that we aren't family by, like, blood or anything. But, you can talk to me too, if you want."

The blonde looked at him hesitantly. "I...I..." Elsa looked at him with an unreadable expression. She knew that he was a safe person – he had established that time and time again. He was also someone that Anna loved dearly. If Elsa was going to be honest, she loved Kristoff too. He was family. She sighed and decided to tell him what has been plaguing her all week. "I'm not sure...how to put any of this..."

From her demeanor, Kristoff pieced together that she probably hadn't even told Anna yet. "Hey, I can keep a secret from Anna if you need me too, okay?" he promised her, "Just promise me that it's something that you will tell her eventually, yeah?" Elsa stared at him a little before nodding. "Cool, so what's up?"

Elsa took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds. "I...I think I may have developed feelings for...one of our visitors..." she told him, wincing as she braced herself for whatever was going to come next.

"Oh?" Kristoff asked. Out of all the things that he thought she was going to say, that was not one of them.

Because of his lack of a real response, Elsa added some clarity. "It's uh...one of the...female...visitors..."

"Oh..."

Scratch that, he thought to himself, THAT was the most unexpected thing she could ever say.

Elsa closed her eyes, as if willing herself not to cry. "And...I'm not sure...what to do."

Still dumbfounded, the ice harvester decided to try his best. "Wow – um, yeah. That...that is some news." he commented, trying to not sound insensitive. "I didn't think you'd ever have a crush on someone. Ever."

The ice wielder just shrugged. "Me neither."

Kristoff shrugged back. "Uh – no offence."

Elsa just looked at him. "None taken, I promise."

After a long pause, Kristoff decided to give her the best advise that he could give. He had been in her position, when he wanted to propose to Anna. Sure, it was different because they were already together (...and they were not both girls...), but he figured that his advice wouldn't hurt. After all, he knew two things were true. One: He had been in more relationships that Elsa (One is not the best number for this test, but it is the winner in this scenario) – perhaps any wisdom he can give will be helpful. And two: Elsa was smart enough to know bad advice if she heard it.

"Well..." Kristoff began, making his choice to give his sister-in-law some advice, "I say go for it."

Elsa looked up at him incredulously. "What?"

"You heard me." He repeated with finality. "All in. Downhill. No going back."

"Kristoff – she has to go to Sweden –!"

"Yeah?" He tried, "All the more reason to try it out. After this, you don't have to see her again!"

The blonde woman pondered his reasoning. Tina really didn't want to get married to King Karl – that much was clear. She had to do this for her kingdom, not for her heart. It made sense that she would want to enjoy her last little bit of freedom. Perhaps the ice harvester was right – perhaps she should just try it out. After all, she would be leaving next week.

"You...You really think so?" Elsa asked him.

Kristoff stepped toward her and gave her the sincerest expression that he could. "Elsa, you've been cooped up for such a long time and I love how much you've grown. But feelings for someone can be special, if you have them. And it seems like it could be a fun little thing, you know? Doesn't have to be heavy or all encompassing. You're not the one getting married in the winter."

Elsa's eyes watered, looking up at the man she considered a brother. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a tight embrace. "I think you're right, Kris. Thank you!" and with one final squeeze, Elsa made a dash for the castle. The ice harvester just watched as she excitedly ran off to face her fears – all because of the advice he had given.

He felt proud of himself.

"Anytime, sis." Kristoff whispered, even though she had already left the scene. Shaking his head, he grabbed the water pail and went to place it in the supplies trunk. While he did so, he still couldn't believe what had just happened. "Man..." he said aloud to just himself, "who would've thought that Elsa would have a crush on Ingrid?"

Terms Used:

kjøttkaker: Norwegian meatball dish, served with gravy and potatoes.