#thought it was time Kristoff had a nice ex

[kristannafever]

Second Chances

Kristanna Modern AU Rated: Explicit (See tags) WC: 3163

Summary: It's been eight months since Anna's ex broke up with her in a brutal way. Her concerned sister sets her up on a date, and when she meets Kristoff, it does not go well. Afterward, upon getting an earful from Elsa, Anna realizes her mistake and goes about making things right. What happens between them afterward gives them each a second chance at love and the life they both want to have.

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“Anna, I am breaking up with you.”

Anna nearly choked on the sip of coffee she had just taken.  She stared at her boyfriend with wide eyes, not sure what she had just heard.  “What?”

“It’s over.”

Panic began to well in the pit of her stomach.  Her hands started to shake as she set the coffee mug back down on the table.  “What do you mean?”

He heaved a dramatic sigh.  “You heard me.  We’re done.”

“Where is this coming from,” she pleaded, getting up and walking over to where he was standing in the kitchen.   He’d just gotten back from his run.  When he left the house, it was as if nothing was any different.  And now he was telling her that they were done?

He rolled his eyes.  “Oh come on, Anna.  We haven’t had sex in weeks.  And when we do, you’re so…” he moved his hands around like he was fishing for the word, “…uninspired.   I mean, you don’t even give good blow jobs.”

Tears welled up in her eyes.   She had thought the problems they were facing were just a bit of a slump.  Just the day before she’d gone out and bought some sexy lingerie to surprise him with after the romantic dinner they had planned for that weekend.   Was that not happening now?

“Oh, and just so you know,” he said casually as he turned away, “I’ve started seeing other women.  So I can get… you know… taken care of.   You don’t even know how to kiss properly.”

Anna felt sick to her stomach, watching helplessly after him as he walked towards their bedroom to take a shower.  Despite having said some mean things to her from time to time, what he had just said was downright cruel, and she felt ashamed of herself.  She felt stupid and pathetic. 

Wiping her eyes, she went back to the table and sat down slowly, staring into her morning coffee that she’d actually been enjoying only a moment ago, trying to figure out in her mind what had just happened.  The long and short of it?  She didn’t please him and he’d been seeing other women. 

How had she not known this?  She had thought everything was just… normal.   He had never been a very enthusiastic lover, and he always met his end while Anna had to often take care of herself, and now she had to wonder if it was because she was just that bad at pleasing a man?

He'd been her first serious boyfriend.  Her first real love.  The first guy she’d ever moved out with.  And now all that was coming crashing down around her.   Three years of her life, gone, just like that.

Anna buried her head into her hands and sobbed.

~   ~   ~   ~   ~

“This is a nice place, Anna.”

Anna didn’t respond, she just let her sister in without a word.  The apartment had been his, of course she had to move out when he dumped her. 

Her sister turned around at Anna’s silence.  “You know I hate that man for what he did to you.”

“I know,” Anna said through a sigh.  “I hate him too.”  She told Elsa that he had cheated on her but she did not tell her sister the awful things that her ex had said to her.  And they hadn’t ended in the kitchen that day.  She had begged and pleaded with him for hours afterwards and was met with yet more harsh comments on what an awful woman she was.

Anna led them into the living room and poured them each a glass of red wine from the bottle that was sitting on the coffee table.   She watched her sister as her eyes went around, taking in the small apartment before settling onto her gaze.      

“So, have you been on any dates?”

“Elsa…” Anna sighed with frustration.  “Why won’t you drop it?”

“Anna, it’s been what?  Eight months?  You need to move on.”

Anna was silent and looked down into her wine.  She knew she needed to move on, but how could she do that?  Apparently, she had nothing to offer a man.  What possible hope did she have of making something work.

Elsa set her wine glass down on the table and turned towards her on the couch.  “I’m so sorry I haven’t been able to get out here sooner.  Work has been incredibly demanding, only now that I see you, I feel like that is a pathetic excuse.”

She frowned.  Did she really look that bad?  “It’s okay, Elsa.  I know how important your job is.  And you still call me almost every night.”

“I do, which is probably why you’re tired of telling me you need to get back out there.  You have to see that it’s time to live your life again, don’t you?”

Anna did know that.  And she wanted to, desperately.  But what man would want her?  She’d been hit on a few times only to brush the guy off knowing that she would end up disappointing him in the end.   If she was honest with herself, she didn’t think she’d be able to stomach going through that again.

“Listen, Anna.  I have a friend who’s fairly new to our firm who happens to have moved from here.  She has a brother, and she says-”

Anna’s eyes went wide.  “No way, Elsa.  I am absolutely not about to be set up right now.”

“Please, Anna.”  Elsa reached out and grabbed her free hand.  “For me?   Please?  You can’t be afraid to start dating again.”

She pulled her hand away from her sisters and set the wine down on the coffee table as she got up.  “No.  Absolutely not.”

Elsa followed her as she walked into the kitchen.  “Give me one good reason why you won’t?” her sister demanded. 

Anna pursed her lips.  She would never breathe a word of what her ex had said to her to another living soul, and that was giving her little option for an excuse.   “I… don’t want to.”

Her sister put her hands on her hips.  “It’s just one date.  Who knows, maybe you’ll get lucky.  Maybe what you need is a night of hot sex to get back on the horse.”

Her face lit up with heat.  “What the fuck, Elsa?  I do not need to hear that coming from my sister.”  Not only that, she did not need a reminder of how awful she was in bed.  It was a constant source of shame that hung over her head.

Elsa gave her a gentle smile.  “Sorry.  I was just trying to make a point.  You have to stop keeping yourself from things that make you happy.  You haven’t even gone to the gym or hung out with your friends since you left your ex.”

“He dumped me, but yeah, I know I haven’t.”

“You need to start living again.”

Anna heaved a deep sigh.  Perhaps it was time.  She’d certainly seen plenty of men who she thought were attractive.  Enough that she’d pleasured herself to the thoughts of being with a man again.  That at least she knew she wasn’t bad at.  In fact, she was practically an expert at getting herself off now. 

“Can I tell my friend yes?”

Anna looked to her sister’s pleading eyes.  “Fine.  One date.”

~   ~   ~   ~   ~

The bar was packed, making it hard for Anna to pick out the man that she was supposed to meet.  She’d been given a general description.  Tall guy, big build, blond…  Anna had formed many mental pictures in her mind of what he might actually look like.

She was told that he’d be somewhere in the bar waiting for her, and every blond Anna looked at seemed to already be on a date or clearly out with a group of friends.  The guy Anna was looking for was supposed to be alone.

She muscled her way to the bar where groups of people were gathered around the stools and talking, waiting on drinks.  Then she spotted a blond man sitting at the end, surrounded by women.  The guy was absolutely huge; his t-shirt stretched tight over his biceps and chest.  And he was gorgeous.  His rugged handsomeness was undeniable.  That was why there were women all over him.

Thinking that couldn’t be her date, Anna went to turn away, when his eyes caught hers and widened with something like recognition.

“Hey, are you Anna?” he called to her over the music and loud conversations

She nodded, not wanting to shout back to him, and he got up from his stool and approached her.  Every single woman he was surrounded by watched all of his movements with lusty interest.

His imposing height loomed over her. “I’m Kristoff,” he said, sticking out his hand.

“Nice to meet you,” Anna responded, shaking it and thinking it wasn’t nice at all.  Not after he’d been hanging out with all those stunning women while waiting for her to show up for their date.  What the hell?  Who does that?

“They’re super busy and wouldn’t let me grab a table until you showed up,” he said.

He already sounded bored.  What the hell had Anna gotten herself into.  “Okay.”

Kristoff shrugged and took off to find a table.  Anna followed, kind of hoping they wouldn’t find one.  The guy was clearly someone who could get whoever he wanted and probably often did. 

Towards the back of the bar near the bathrooms, he spied an open table and made a b-line to it.  Anna sat on the stool across from him and put her purse on the edge of the high table.

He smiled.  “It’s quieter over here too.”

There was nothing but cool confidence behind that smile and Anna squirmed again thinking of how many gorgeous women had been salivating over him moments before.  “You sure didn’t waste your time talking to the other ladies, I see.”

He frowned.  “They were talking to me.  I wasn’t talking to them.”

Anna rolled her eyes.  “Sure.  A guy like you must just hate it when women hang all over him.”

His unhappy face turned into a scowl.  “What are you saying?”

“Look, I agreed to go on this date, but not with a player, okay?”

Kristoff became emotionless.  “Have me pegged, do you?” he asked evenly.

Anna could only shrug.  “It’s not that hard to figure out.  The reason a guy who looks like you is single, is that he wants to stay single.”

He stared at her, expression impossible to read.

“Lets just save us both time.  I refuse to be a conquest, so you can just go back to all those ladies at the bar who can barely keep it in their pants.”  Anna got up, keeping her eyes off his unreadable face, feeling relieved.  She didn’t even want to go on this date in the first place.  She was almost glad that this guy, as hot as he was, wasn’t going to work out.

Anna spared him a glance as she turned away and was a little shocked to see profound sadness in his eyes.  It was almost enough for her to turn back around and say something. 

Almost. 

~   ~   ~   ~   ~

Anna looked at her ringing phone.  It was Elsa.  She let out a long sigh and answered.  “Hello?”

“What the fuck, Anna?  Why the hell did you brush off that date last night?”

She groaned inwardly.  This was not a conversation she wanted to have.  “He wasn’t my type.”

“Bullshit!  My friend talked to her brother and he told her what you said to him.  That was pretty awful, Anna.”

She frowned.  Had it been?  She was only speaking the truth.  “Well… you didn’t tell me the guy was a total player.”

Elsa huffed with frustration.  “He’s not!  He hasn’t been on a date in a year!”

“Elsa, he had women, and I mean gorgeous women, all over him when I arrived at the bar.”

“And he was what?  Flirting with them?”

Anna thought back to the scene at the bar.  One of the women had her hand on his arm and was talking his ear off, another one giving him fuck me eyes from his other side, two behind him waiting for their turn, and he was… sitting there.  He was staring at something.  Or was it nothing.  Then he’d looked over and his eyes had widened… they kind of looked a little… well at the time it looked like recognition but thinking back, they seemed a little more… relieved?

Anna gasped.  “Oh no, what have I done?”

Her sister sighed.  “Anna, you might need to talk to someone.  I don’t know what Hans did to you, but it was something.   I have doubts that he was never abusive to you even though you assured me that he never was.”

“He said some mean things, Elsa.  That’s all.”  Anna would give her that much, no more.  Not ever.  No one would ever know of her humiliation.

There was silence on the other end of the line for a beat.  “So maybe you said some things you didn’t mean to a nice guy because you are still so scared of putting yourself out there?”

Anna’s stomach rolled with unease to think about the hurtful way she’d brushed Kristoff off.  “Yeah.  I guess I am.”

“Well, at least you can recognise that.”

“Elsa, I feel terrible.  Is there any way I can get his number?  To apologise?”

“Well…I can ask my friend, although I have to warn you, she was pretty pissed that you treated her brother that way.”

“Please try, Elsa.  I feel awful and I need to tell him that I am sorry.”

“Alright.  I’ll call you back in five, okay?”

“Okay.”  Anna hung up the phone and rung it in her hands.  She could not believe she’d been so mean to someone and tears sprung in her eyes.  It made her feel terrible to think she’d said something hurtful to someone.  It reminded her of what her ex had said to her, and that Kristoff guy did not deserve that, even if he was a player.

Her phone rang in her hands and startled her to the point she almost threw it across the room.  “Hello?”

“Okay, I got the number.”

“Oh, thank you, Elsa.  Thank you so much.”  She sniffed.  “And tell your friend-”

“Anna, are you crying?”

She nodded and started to sob.  “I feel so bad, Elsa.  I was so mean to that poor man.  Please tell your friend to tell her brother that I am so sorry and that he can expect me to contact him to say so that I can apologize and-”

“Anna… Anna!”

She sniffed and reigned in her emotions.  This was insane.  She needed to get a grip on herself.  For all those months she carried all that hurt when her ex broke up with her and it was all starting to come out after treating someone else poorly.  It was becoming a little clearer to her that there were some issues she was going to have to deal with, and soon.

“Anna?”

Sniff.  “Yeah?”

“You need to stop beating yourself up about this, okay?”

“What if he doesn’t accept my apology?” Anna asked, wiping her damp cheeks. 

“Well, then I guess you just have to live with it.”

She shoulders slumped, suddenly exhausted.  “Yeah.  I guess I made the bed I have to lie in it.”

Her sister was silent on the other end for a moment.  “Whatever happens, Anna… it’ll be okay.  Everything will be okay.  You’ll have plenty of other chances.”

Anna nodded to herself, steeling her emotions for the text she was about to send.  “I know.  Thank you, Elsa.”

*****

Kristoff looked at the text from the number that he did not know, and set the phone down in contemplation.

He knew it was coming.  His sister had called him and given him the heads up she’d passed his number along to the woman who was so rude to him last night.  To say he was conflicted was an understatement. 

He hadn’t been hurt like that in a while.  Which was weird because he didn’t know this woman.  It was just that she passed him off so easily that it made him second guess himself a bit.  In retrospect, he should have been ruder to the women vying for his attention at the bar.  Why couldn’t this Anna understand that he had absolutely zero interest in them.  Instead, she’d taken one look at him and decided he was one of those pigs that used women as conquests.  And that fucking hurt.

That was why he’d agreed to be set up.  Trying to meet someone on line or even in a club brought out all the wrong kinds of women for him.  He had yet to meet someone that was looking for something serious, not just some fun fling or one night stand. 

He sighed, and read the message again.

Hi Kristoff, this is Anna, the woman who was rude to you last night and who you wish you probably never met.  I need to say that I am sorry for how I acted and what I said to you.  Clearly! I have issues to deal with.  I would hope you have it in your heart to meet me quickly so that I may apologize in person.  If you wish to never talk to me again though, I completely understand.  If I don’t hear back from you in a couple of days, I will assume I have my answer and delete your number.   I am sorry.

It read like an email, and quite frankly a little bit of a cry for help.  He certainly had his own issues, and he could not deny that her acknowledging her own had softened his attitude towards how she had treated him.  It wasn’t like he was exactly innocent of never behaving poorly when he was dealing with things.  When his sister had let him know to expect her to contact him, he just shrugged and assumed he’d delete the message and move on.  Only having read it and its sincerity…

He started typing.

Hi Anna.  Thank you for reaching out.  Please don’t be too hard on yourself.  If you would like to talk, we could meet for a coffee?

He read it three times and hit send before he changed his mind.  He’d just set his phone down when it dinged.

He chuckled.  “That was fast.”

Thank you so much Kristoff!  Would tomorrow work?  I could meet you at 11 at that coffee shop that’s just on the corner of 10th and Elm?

He typed back;

Sure.  See you then

Anna immediately hearted his message and he set his phone down.  He’d been watching the game on TV and he turned his attention back to it, only in the back of his mind he had other thoughts about how seeing this woman again was going to go.

---

Next Chapter

[pirate-of-the-southern-isles]

Fanfic snippet - When Hans had learned about the "Troll theory"

Not so long after, the company has spread around the bookshop and disappeared from each other’s sight. Which, as Hans thought, was probably the safest option for him. He was finally able to find a nice chair and sit down for a moment to think about what the hell just happened.

His father, his brothers, his whole family, has spent three years hammering into his head with a burning passion what a shame he brought to them all. And he could even agree with them. And now it turns out that there are some people out there who consider him a hero? How?! Everything was perfectly clear! Anna, in this letter of hers, wrote the truth, the whole truth and only the truth. What was their reason not to believe her?!

It wasn’t like this, like, at all. OK, it was, but in a totally different way. Yes, he was handing over those blankets and jackets, and yes, he found a place in Arendellian palace where people could find a shelter and food, and yes, he was watching over the hot glogg. Yes, that’s true. But he wasn’t doing all this because he cared, he was doing it, because he wanted them to like him and trust him and accept him as their future King. There is a difference. And then… then it was completely not like the lecturer has told, because no, there was no troll magic, that’s impossible. The plan was ready for years! Since Lars has told him about Elsa and how he should consider marrying her!

He shut his eyes and tried to recall that scene. Lars was searching through his maps and wondered why father allows Caleb to run amok – which, in a language of simple folks, was called „causing incidents on borders”. It was right after their mother’s birthday dinner, when the rest of those apes made bullying him a main attraction of the evening, as usual. So, after he had rested in the docks for a while, he went to the library. And then, the twins came to tell Lars about the death of Arendelle’s royal couple. And then… damn, how much he would give to have Lars to shut up this one time.

He remembered it. He remembered the red velvet chairs, a smell of dust and a warm tone of his older brother. He remembered the sound of the doors opening, Rudi and Runo’s stupid faces and papers, blown away from the table by a sudden air movement.

But… if trolls have changed Anna’s memory about Elsa…

Whatever Kristoff says, is irrelevant. He is a side in this conflict. No. Hans had to conduct his own research.

He got up and took the flyer to find an etnography and etnology section. He went right there, not sure if he can trust in his own sanity. Yes, he encountered a lot of creatures with abilities to alter people’s – and other animals – minds with venoms, hypnosis or other stuff. But if it will turn out that he was imprisoned and went through it all only because some trolls wanted to have their own man in the palace…!

Calm down, it is impossible!

Is it?! He just learnt that his ex’s memories were literally changed and cleared, so she couldn’t remember about something as important as her own sister’s magical abilities! Who knows, if…

He suddenly felt sick. He needed to sit down again. There was no time to look for another chair.

Three years.

Three years of hell.

And now someone is stating that there is a possibility he could have been framed?!

If that’s true, I will burn Arendelle to the ground.

No. No, no, no. He couldn’t think like that, not anymore. He grabbed his left ear. He felt the cold of his earrings. Took a few deep breaths. He imagined a night full of stars. Warmth on his skin. Smell of the open sea. Sails’s flapper. Hard, wooden bench by the cabin, right between doors and left stairs. Calm, kind voice of captain Rogers, asking, as usual, the right question.

„If that’s the truth about what happened” imaginary Rogers started „think, what would have happened if they wouldn’t alter your mind.”

„I wouldn’t rot in those stables for three years, that’s what would happen".

„Yes, and you would still be a prince of the Southern Isles. Were you happy back then?”.

„Happier than a slave in those stables”.

„Let’s try differently. That night, you know which one… where would you be, if you were still a prince?”.

Hans took a breath. A sea. A smell of salt.

„I would be… probably in my chambers. Or in Arendelle, depends if I would convince one of them to marry me”.

„So you wouldn’t be in your cell, is that correct?”

A big explosion. Boom. Pieces of wall, made of a black stone which was not supposed to break under any artillery, but then it did. A cannonball that brought him a new life.

„That’s correct. I wouldn’t be there”.

Waves crashing on broadsides. Morning Star’s gentle rocking.

„Are you happy as a pirate?”.

He smiled. Now he was remembering different things. His head was suddenly flooded by the bright, happy memories. Layla’s insane laugh. The first time when he tasted a coconut. Mango, purring in his lap. Successfull boarding upon some unsuspecting ship. His crew cheering. How the world looks like from a crow’s nest. Egg patting his back. A bet with Bernard, easily winned. A sight of a group of wild buffalos, when they once anchored in the New World. The day when he became a captain. The first time in the Republic, when he saw how different the world can be. Dancing in their favourite bar. Meeting new friends. Those evenings with shanties on their deck. Yet another one lost treasure retrieved. Cannons’s boom and reckless duels, sacks of gold and chests of jewels.

„Yes” he said, almost out loud.

„I am glad” Roger’s face was brightened by a smile. „But let’s wonder… would you become a pirate if you weren’t there that night? In the exactly right place in the exactly right time?”.

It was a tough question. The pirates were all over the place. He could, in theory, grab and make his offer to any of them. But would he be desperate enough to change his life this radically?

No, he admitted right away. In this case – no. In this case he would probably stay with his lovely family and be miserable till the end of his days.

„So… if they really did something to my brain… I should be grateful?”

„Dear Neptune, no! I didn’t say it. If that’s really their work and you went to Arendelle with truly good intentions, then you have every right to be furious. And I am saying like Davy Jones’ level of fury.”

„Exactly!”

„But, in the end, your fate was changed. I think, for the better. Wasn’t it?”

Without those three years in stables he wouldn’t became a pirate, that’s for sure. There wouldn’t be the first time crossing the Equator. There wouldn’t be passage round the Horn of the South. He wouldn’t get himself tattoos or earrings – hell, he wouldn’t even think about it! He wouldn’t be laying down on the incredibly soft, white beaches of the Coconut Isles. He wouldn’t see volcanos explode, nor the whale’s inside, not the Pearly Gates open down in the Southern Ocean. Layla wouldn’t teach him to play stories. Bernard wouldn’t teach him how to shoot a musket and a colt. He wouldn’t have met many people he was no longer able to imagine his life without.

He wouldn’t have met captain Rogers.

It was all truth, but those three years were so damn hard.

It just… He just wished he was certain that he had deserved it. Because if it turns out that he had to endure this nightmare without any actual fault of his own, then… then it would make it, somehow, a lot worse.  

----

Chapter 35, "The Pirate of the Southern Isles".

So, Hans and his guests were able to hear what the rest of the world is thinking about events from six years ago in Arendelle. It is safe to say that it didn't go exactly how they imagined it will. What they have heard was basically one, big, fat Hans' defence and laudation. Including the famous "Troll theory" - a theory in which it was the trolls who actually made Hans evil, to "get the fiancee out of the way" for Kristoff.

When Hans heard about it - and learnt that they did the same thing to Anna - he started to question his own sanity and bought himself a lot of books to learn about the trolls and their abilities.

...but no, his mind wasn't altered. It was still, to his own relief, all his fault.

When Hans is overwhelmed, or sad, or angry, or when he has to make a choice he is not sure about because his moral reasoning is still a little off, he grabs his left ear (the one with the earrings) and try to ask himself "What would captain Rogers say?", because captain Rogers (the captain of the "Morning Star", Hans escaped from the Isles on its deck) is his final authority now.

Sorry about all the mistakes, English is still not my native language.

[upthenorthmountain]

Between the Lines - 4

Previous Chapters

Short one this time, but I’ve already written a lot of chapter 5 and that should be quite a bit longer, so here we go for now

Chapter 4 - Coventry and Birmingham

“Don’t be silly, Elsa.”

“You’ve said his name about ten times and we’ve barely been talking five minutes.”

“I don’t see many people, that’s all. I’ve been writing during the week.”

“Mmhmm.”

“It’s mermaids, this one. You know, I realised I hadn’t used mermaids, I thought about it when I was in Brighton with Kristoff and we were at the seafront - STOP LAUGHING.”

-----

When a woman and a little girl took seats for Kristoff’s reading, Anna wondered if she should go over and check that they had arrived at the correct time. But as soon as Kristoff saw them he went straight over, hugged the child and kissed the woman on the cheek.

After a couple of minutes of conversation he looked around and beckoned Anna over. “Anna, this is my sister, Katja, and my niece Holly.”

“Pleased to meet you!”

“And you!” Katja said. “I was just saying to Kris, you must both come to ours for dinner tonight.”

“Oh! How nice! Of course, I’d love to.”

The bookshop manager behind them cleared her throat. “Oh, I’m on,” Kristoff said. “Talk to you later.” He hesitated. “Do you have to listen to me?”

“I didn’t park in the centre of Coventry on a Saturday to NOT listen to you. And I’ve prepared some questions.”

“Lovely.”

“And we want to see Anna, too, of course.”

“Yes!” said Holly.

“Uncle Kris first, though,” Katja told her daughter.

“Oh, okay.”

-----

Kristoff leant against the bookshop wall and watched Anna read, as he always did. She’d left her hair down, and every time she looked down at her book it swung forward and got in her way; every time she tossed her head to throw it back over her shoulder she caught his eye for a split-second. She’d nearly lost her place twice already.

When Anna looked up properly at the end of the reading, she noticed Kristoff’s sister in the first row of seats. She was watching her brother watching Anna, smiling to herself. Anna quickly put her book down and asked the children if any of them had any questions.

-----

It was Anna’s turn to drive this weekend, so she let Kristoff direct her through the maze of a housing estate where Katja and her family lived. Anna was introduced to Katja’s husband, and Holly’s little brother who was only four and not yet much of a reader; then Holly insisted on Anna coming upstairs to admire her bedroom wallpaper and bookshelves.

When they came back downstairs, Anna found the other grown-ups in the kitchen. Katja was putting something in the oven and saying “- well, what are you going to do about it?” to her brother, who replied “You’re as bad as Mum -” before stopping guiltily at Anna’s entrance.

Katja looked up. “Oh! Anna, you escaped. Can I get you a drink?”

“Just a small one, thanks, I’m driving.”

“Kris, did Mum tell you she saw Lindsay the other day?” Katja said as she poured. “Ran into her in town and then they had a coffee. She’s still single!”

“Yeah, she said. And I’m ignoring that last part.”

“Who’s Lindsay?” Anna asked, a bit too quickly. She didn’t care, why would she care? She was just making conversation.

“My ex-girlfriend,” Kristoff said. “We broke up a year ago and some people still won’t let it go.”

“She was lovely!” Katja said.”I miss her. Mum’s still a bit cross with him for not marrying her,” she added to Anna. Kristoff sighed.

“I’m still not going to marry someone just because Mum thinks they’d make a good daughter-in-law,” he said. “But then it took Mum about six months to accept we’d actually broken up.”

“Because you were still so friendly with each other,” Katja said.

“Why wouldn’t we be friends?”

“Because that’s not how it goes for anyone else? Oh, and because she doesn’t think you broke up for a good reason.”

“It had run its course. We had a good three years, it wasn’t a failure just because Mum didn’t get to wear her wedding hat.” He picked up his drink. “And that’s enough, okay? I’m sick of rehashing it.”

“Sorry.”

“What’s for dinner?” Anna said.

-----

Anna drove them back to the hotel.

“I read your book,” Kristoff said, once they were on the main road.

“You did?”

“Yes, I was - curious. And I’ve heard the first chapter a few times now, I wanted to know how it ends.”

Anna laughed. “Fair enough. And?”

“It was surprisingly well-plotted. I mean - ”

“- you mean you’re surprised to find I can actually write.”

“No, I….”

“I’m having that put on the back of the next edition. ‘Surprisingly well-plotted’, Kristoff Bjorgman, author of Fire & Ice, in which three people get horribly murdered.”

“...sorry.”

“‘Not as long as some books’. ‘More than tolerable.’”

“I said sorry.”

“It’s okay - I get it a lot. No one takes my writing seriously. It’s for kids - worse than that, it’s for girls. Everyone thinks they could do it. But it’s actually a very crowded market. You have to be good to get anywhere. And you have to write something the parents want to read, too, or they won’t buy them.”

There was silence for a moment. “I couldn’t write what you do,” Kristoff said.

“I could write yours,” Anna said airily. “Start at the end and work backwards, right?”

“It’s more complicated than that.”

“Watch me.” She looked thoughtful for a moment. “The leader of the Council of Fairies has been horribly murdered, found hacked to pieces in the Sunlit Meadow - “

“Steady on - “

“- and Queen Merryhooves asks Ruby and Pearl to help her find the culprit. So they turn to that well-known and most skilled detective, Olaf Snøvenn, to help them -”

“- can’t they just magic up the answer?”

“Magic has to have rules and limits or there’s no fun. And no plot. And my books are surprisingly well-plotted.”

“Hmm. So if you start at the end, who did it?”

“Ruby.”

“What!”

“I know! What a twist! I’m a genius.”

“But why?”

“Tired of her big sister always getting the credit when she’s really the brains of the outfit.”

“That sounds a bit - psychological.”

“Just stating facts.”

They drove on a bit further. “I’m so glad I’m doing this tour with you,” Anna said, “because this evening was so nice. I can’t remember the last time someone made dinner for me, at their home, I mean. And your sister and her family are lovely. So thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. She’s been dying to meet you, I’m surprised she held off this long.”

Anna glanced at him. She wasn’t going to ask what he’d told his sister about her. She thought about what her own sister had said the day before on the telephone.

“When I see my sister,” she said instead, “We go to the theatre or something, or a restaurant where what the food looks like is much more important than how it tastes, and we drink cocktails. And that’s fun, but tonight was so - home-y. I think you’re used to it so you don’t notice.”

“Probably. I mean, it was nice, of course it was. I’d rather the evening we had than the theatre and the cocktails, I don’t think I’ve ever drunk a cocktail.”

“You have to be a bit careful because sometimes you can’t taste the alcohol very well, and you might not realise how strong it is until you try and stand up in heels and fall over again and have to be helped out to the taxi.”

He laughed. “This is a hypothetical scenario, I’m assuming.”

“Of course, I would never do a thing like that.”

Kristoff tried to stretch out his legs, but couldn’t manage it very well in the small car. He looked at his watch, then across at Anna. “Penny for them.”

“Mmm? I was just thinking about how that isn’t really me, either. It’s Elsa, and it’s fun, but it isn’t me. I’d rather be home-y. With my own family, one day.”

“You know,” he said, looking at her, “I can see that, actually. You in some farmhouse kitchen surrounded by children and dogs, wellies all over the floor and mittens drying on the Aga, perfectly happy.”

“One day,” Anna said. “Have to find myself a man first.”

[thesvenqueen]

Secret Santa

Hello @artnerd2003​  tis I, your Secret Santa :) 

I decided to play a bit with a single parent au paired nicely with a side of Christmas. I hope you like it and hope you have a wonderful Holiday :D

“You’re sure he won’t recognize you?”

“Anna,” Kristoff said, looking down at her, “I promise you, my own nieces don’t recognize me. He will be none the wiser.”

Anna bit her lip, zipping Kristoff’s jacket up as she nodded. “If you’re sure.”

“Hey,” Kristoff whispered, grabbing her hands and bringing them to his lips, “It’ll be great.”

“Oh, I know it will!” Anna responded quickly with a large smile, “I know, he just...didn’t do well the last time we tried to…”

“I know, but it’ll be different this time.”

“Because it’s you?” 

“Well, that,” Kristoff said with a sly grin, “and because it’ll be at my parent’s house. It’ll be just the family, no one else. It won’t be nearly as bad.”

“You’re right.” Anna sighed. “I’m just…”

“I know, you’re worried for him and there is nothing wrong with that.” Kristoff pushed a stray piece of hair from her face, “Why you are such a great Mom.”

Anna pushed his chest with a giggle, “You big lug.”

Kristoff chuckled, “I’ll see you in a bit.”

Anna smiled as she stood on her tip toes and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck. For a moment, Anna had half a mind to convince him to stay just a bit longer as his tongue ran across her  bottom lip, until she heard small footsteps running towards them.

The couple pulled apart, turning just in time to spy Thomas rounding the corner. “I wanna come!”

“In a little while Thomas,” Anna said, bending down to her son. “But Kristoff has to go get everything ready. You can’t go with him, we’ll meet him there ok?”

The boy pouted, “But I wanna go. I can help.” Thomas looked up to Kristoff, his bottom lip pushed out as far as he could manage, “Please.”

Kristoff smiled, crouching down to be at the young boy’s level, “Next time buddy, I promise. We can have a whole day out at the farm, just you and me, how does that sound?”

Thomas gasped, nodding his head in excitement before looking to Anna, “Can we Mama please?”

Anna nodded, making the boy jump in excitement. Seeing her son so happy at the idea of spending time with Kristoff warmed her heart, nearly bringing tears to her eyes. It was a stark contrast to how he had been just nearly two years before. 

Really, Anna herself was a stark contrast to who she was then. Back then, Anna had been terrified at the idea of dating again. Though the wound her ex-husband had caused when he up and left her with a barely one year old Thomas was healed, the idea of giving her heart to someone, to trusting anyone again had scared her. She hardly trusted herself with anything, especially dating after failing so terribly.

It had been chance, fate maybe, that made her sign Thomas up for the little league soccer. Something to keep him busy, something different that could be fun for him. That’s how she had met Kristoff.

He was Thomas’ coach, and the first day Anna had thought for a moment Kristoff despised her. It hadn’t been her fault traffic had been so absolutely terrible the one time she’d left early, making them a bit late to the first meeting. 

Kristoff had only looked at her, asking for the registration form and nothing more, and leaving Anna standing alone afterwards to wonder what she had done for him to be so cold. She’d dealt with this chill nature before, from those around town who loved to whisper about her and her past, but something inside decided to fight it and not run from it.

So instead, she had made it a point to arrive twenty minutes early to every practice. Still, Kristoff was a bit standoffish with her, only muttering a few words but he was the total opposite with Thomas. He was amazing with kids, always encouraging, never negative towards them and Anna found her cheeks hurting after most practices from smiling so much at the sight of Thomas enjoying himself.

Slowly, Kristoff began to open up to her, making it a point to speak with her before practice, sometimes finding her after to just talk about things. The few minutes they got to chat with just the two of them, sometimes Thomas too, became a favorable routine.

After a time, Anna found herself looking forward to practice and not just to see her son having such a good time. 

Anna had been the one to muster the courage to ask him for coffee after one chilly afternoon practice and Kristoff had accepted with a smile. 

The first real date, with just the two of them, Anna explained her past. She wanted it all out on the table so Kristoff knew where she was coming from, and to give him a chance to run if he wanted to.

But he didn’t.

He’d been so patient, so caring, so incredibly goodhearted and not just with her, but with Thomas too. 

The first lunch with the three of them together had been incredibly awkward. Thomas had been so shy, so quiet the entire time and it had killed Anna to see him so shut off from Kristoff. The complete and total opposite from how he was with him at soccer practice. Somehow the young boy knew that this was something more than a simple lunch. 

Though just as Anna needed time to open up, so had Thomas and now the young boy looked forward to every visit from Kristoff. Asking nearly every day when the next time he’d see Kristoff and the last few months, he hadn’t had to ask as Kristoff was over all the time now.

“Alright bud,” Kristoff said, ruffling the young boy’s hair, “I’ll see you later ok?”

“Okay.” Thomas threw himself at Kristoff, wrapping his small arms around the man as far as he could manage to hug him. Kristoff chuckled as he hugged him back, then standing and giving Anna one last kiss, was out the door.

~.~

“Thomas, sweetie, you’re next with Santa!”

Thomas peered from behind Anna’s leg at Bulda who was beaming at him. Though a bold, adventurous child, Anna couldn’t quite understand his fear of Santa.

Then again, thinking of her own past encounters with Santa as a kid, it seemed he was more like his mother than she realized. 

He was biting the string of his jacket, staring intently at the man sitting in the large seat in front of him. Anna beant down, the boy not even looking at her as she moved. “Thomas, it’s ok.”

Anna turned back as she heard one of the kids laugh, seeing Kristoff chuckle along with them. She’d nearly burst into a fit of giggles at the site of Kristoff, decked in full Santa garb and a full long white beard, walking into the living room. All the kids had been so excited, except for Thomas. He had immediately looked for his mother and hadn’t left her side since.

Poor thing had nearly knocked Anna over with how fast he’d ran to her. 

“I’ll be right there with you, ok?” Anna said quietly, pulling the string from Thomas’ mouth. Still, the boy didn’t stop staring at Kristoff as he placed his nephew down from his lap. 

Anna watched Kristoff look over to them, winking at her before looking over at the nervous Thomas. 

“You must be Thomas!” Kristoff said in his most convincing Santa voice. 

Thomas didn’t move, still staring at the Santa that sat in front of him. Smiling, Kristoff slowly stood, taking small steps to not spook the poor boy. 

Thankfully, Thomas didn’t run, he only nestled closer to his mom. Kristoff came to them and knelt in front of them causing Thomas to bury his head into Anna’s shoulder.

Sorry, Anna mouthed but Kristoff shook his head, still smiling.

“Thomas.” Kristoff murmured, still keeping his Santa voice. Thomas turned just enough to let one of his eyes look at him, “Is there something you want for Christmas?”

There was a brief pause, then Thomas nodded yes.

“Do you want a soccer ball?”

Thomas shook his head no.

“A fire truck?”

Again, Thomas shook his head no.

“Tell you what,” Kristoff said softly, “why don’t you whisper it to me? It can be our secret, yeah?”

Thomas only stared at him, looking him over as if contemplating if, in fact, he could trust him. He looked over at Anna, as though asking for permission. 

“It’s ok.” Anna whispered assuringly. With that, Thomas stood back up and nodded. 

As Thomas came to him, Kristoff turned his head and felt the boy’s small hands cup his ear. 

Whatever Thomas had whispered into Kristoff’s ear, it had been a complete surprise as Kristoff’s eyes went wide. As the boy pulled away, Kristoff was smiling wide and said after a deep Santa laugh, “I think we can manage that.”

~.~

“So,” Anna said, coming to stand next to Kristoff on his parent’s front porch. She handed him a cup of hot chocolate before she continued, “What did he ask Santa for Christmas?”

Kristoff grinned at her, bringing the cup to his mouth, “I’m afraid that’s a secret between him and Santa.”

“Oh come on.” Anna said, pouting, “I’m his Mom.”

Kristoff chuckled, “I know but, it’s our secret.”

“That’s not fair.” 

He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer to his chest and kissed the crown of her head. “You’ll find out in a few days.”

“You know I don’t have much patience.”

“You’ll just have to find some.”

That earned him a jabb to his chest as Anna tried to fight the smile on her face.

Kristoff looked down at her, smiling as he watched her lean her head against him. She would, in fact, come to find out exactly what it was Thomas had whispered in his ear. 

Something that Kristoff himself had been thinking about for a while now.

Something that coincidentally had to do with the ring that sat in his back pocket. That had been on him for days now for just the right moment to appear.

It looked like Christmas day would be the perfect day, especially now knowing exactly what Thomas wanted.

Kristoff took another sip of his hot chocolate, looking out to find the small boy, Thomas’ whispered request playing over & over in his head.

“I want a Papa.”

[bad-at-names-and-faces]

First Session

Oh, look, I wrote a modern AU one-shot... 

ao3 ffn

This is it, Anna thought to herself, go time. She took a deep breath and stepped through the door of the clinic, a bell dinging as she entered.  It looked more like a day spa than the doctor’s office she was expecting.  Her dermatologist had recommended this place for tattoo removal, but nobody else in the waiting room looked like his usual clientele.  

Maybe it was because it was a Monday morning.  

She walked up to the counter and introduced herself.  The cigarette-voiced lady across the counter handed her a clipboard full of paperwork to fill out.  As Anna sat down in an empty corner to fill out the form, she thought it would have been nice if that tattoo parlor by the beach in Florida a few years back had required half this much paperwork before letting her get her ex's name etched in on her lower back.  What had Elsa called it at the time?  Oh, of course, a tramp stamp. Her sister had apologized since then, but the words had burned into Anna’s mind, especially after her engagement with Hans had fallen apart.

Elsa had swallowed her pride and helped her plan that wedding, never mentioning any price tags.  When Anna had started thinking about calling it off, she had gone and checked the venue price.  Then she looked at the cancellation policy.  The wording was dense and legalistic, but Anna came away with the sinking feeling that Elsa wasn’t getting much of her money back. 

“Don’t worry about the cancellations, I’ll take care of that,” Elsa promised her.  

“I’m sorry, you did so much, and you didn’t even like him,” Anna apologized.  

“Money is money, better to have a few lost deposits now...”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“Seriously, good riddance to him!”

“I guess you’re right.”

“Really, have you seen what a divorce costs? The reception hall can keep that deposit.”

“Fine, you’re right.  I do need to take care of one thing, though.”

“What’s that?” 

“Don’t you remember?”

Anna startled to her senses when the receptionist rasped something out.  A large man with a shaggy red beard and tattoos all over his face got up and walked to the desk, and it appeared that he was the one the receptionist was calling over.  Was that a leprechaun on the back of his neck?  

Oh, wait, the leprechaun was holding a basketball; it was a sports logo.  She couldn’t tell what half the other tattoos visible over his clothing were supposed to be. The door to the back opened and the face-tattoo man walked out of the waiting room. 

Anna looked down at her lap and realized she’d only written down her name and her date of birth so far.  Wait, no… she had written down her date of birth in the spot designated “today’s date”... She hoped they weren’t picky about scratching things out on these forms.  

Even with just her name filled out so far, she really didn’t want to start over completely.  She hurried through the basic information, and copied the information from her insurance card.  Would they even cover this? She couldn’t imagine they would, but it didn’t hurt to try.  Then there was a long list of health questions, with “yes” or “no” choices.  Most of them were “no” answers, but then she got going and realized she had checked “no” for something where she should have checked “yes”... more scratching out and rewriting.

She got to the end of the bottom page, and double checked.  Yes, she really had filled out the whole thing.  It felt like she was handing in a final exam walking back over to the receptionist.  A gruff “Thank you” and she was told to wait “just a few more minutes” until her appointment. Anna let out an audible sigh.  Her appointment was officially five minutes ago.

As if on cue, the door opened and a young woman called out her name.  She led Anna back to a small room that looked more like a dentist’s office.  She had actually felt calm until now, though she did her best not to look or sound nervous.

The young woman read the list of risks and limitations, and Anna told her that she understood.  

“Any other questions?” she asked.

“Do I need to change?” Anna asked, “I mean… is there a gown for me or something like that?”

“No, you’ll just need to keep the area with the tattoo visible.”

“Fine,” Anna sighed, beginning to undo her jeans.

“Wait, wait,” the young woman stopped her.  “I’m just an assistant.  The laser tech will be here in a few minutes.”

Anna sheepishly refastened her jeans.  “Thank you.”

The assistant nodded, closing the door behind her as she left.

Anna hardly had time to gather her thoughts before there was a knock at the door.

“Come in,” she said, trying to sound calm and collected.

A tall blond man in a lab coat walked in holding a clipboard, looking through what she could tell was the paperwork she had filled out earlier, full of errors.  

“You’d think you guys would have erasable pens at a place like this,” she said with a half nervous giggle. 

“You could just ask for a new form to fill out,” he replied dryly.

“Aren’t you supposed to introduce yourself?” she asked, “I mean, you have all of my information there, it seems only fair.”

He nodded.  “I’m Kristoff.  I’ll be your laser technician.”  

“Hi, Kristoff,” she said, instinctively sticking her hand out to shake, “I’m Anna, but I’m sure you already knew that.”

He nodded, shaking her hand firmly.  “So, it’s on your lower back?”

“Do I need to show you?”  

“I will need to have access.”

She nodded, turning around and lowering her pants a few inches.  “It’s so embarrassing,” she apologized instinctively. 

“Your form says red, this is pink,” was all he said.

“Huh?”

“Pink will take more sessions to remove.”

“Really?”

“Yes.  So, do you want to get started?”

She was glad Kristoff hadn’t told her to get comfortable before it started.  She had been the sort of child to break an arm and not notice right away if everything was still in place, but the pain was beyond anything, even worse that getting the tattoo had been in the first place.  She managed not to make any noise, but after a while she realized she had managed to bite the inside of her lip a little too forcefully.’

“Done for today,” he said. 

It took her a moment to realize that he was on the other side of the room now, cleaning up.  She put her hand on the spot, which had a small bandage.

“How many more sessions?” 

“Ten sessions total, if you’re lucky,” he smirked.  

“When is the next session?”

“You’ll arrange that out front, but it’s usually four or five weeks.”

Anna did the math in her head as she walked toward the door; this was going to take nearly a year.  “Ugh, this is going to take longer than the relationship.”

He nodded. “We get a lot of business that way.”

“My sister was right, I shouldn’t have gotten a tattoo with the name of someone I just met that day.”

“You got a tattoo with the name of someone you just met that day?” Kristoff asked, looking at her.

“I thought you said that kind of stuff was common,” Anna said, regretting letting herself babble on.

He laughed.  “Don’t worry, by this time next year, Hans will be long gone.”

“Wait, how did you know his name?” she asked before she could stop herself. “No, don’t answer that. I’ll see you in four weeks, Kristoff.”

Anna walked back into the waiting room, standing a respectable distance behind the man with the leprechaun tattoo as he made the arrangements for his next session. The spot on his neck was now covered with a small bandage.\

[elsanna-shenanigans]

June Contest Submission #13: sound of rain

Words: ca. 5,500 Setting: mAU Lemon: No CW: Angst, incest shame, mentions of driving in storms

What were Anna’s greatest fears, you ask? Well, for starters, she was scared of clowns. And spiders. And those Minecraft icebergs videos on youtube that always played creepy music in the background and promised to not discuss creepypastas of any kind (but were always lying. Those especially kept her up at night).

However, not even the most predictable jumpscare, which always sent Anna falling off her chair like the adult she was, could hold a candle to the way her stomach sank when her mother called that one night at 7 pm. Anna could barely hear her phone below the branches rattling against the windows and the heavy rain loudly splattering on their roof. She’d already been on edge since she heard the wind blowing a little bit harsher than usual. It resembled a woman’s shriek. But when she tiptoed towards her phone (like she did whenever she was spooked), she was thrust into a much more horrifying ordeal, one she’d been trying to avoid every time the chance came up. Her throat went dry. She clenched her fist.

“Anna, love, we won’t be able to make it home tonight.”

They’d leave them alone. The two sisters. Alone at night.

“We’ll stay with some friends. They live only a few blocks away from work.”

Heavy footfalls echoed down the stairs. A wretched feeling clawed at Anna’s stomach. 

“We already told your sister. She’ll take care of you.”

Her sister. Elsa, her sister, who stood now on the bottom of the stairs, staring at Anna without interrupting this one-sided stream of words their mother poured into her ears. The shirt she wore was shoulderless. 

Anna coughed.

“O-oh! Is it really that bad over there?”

“The streets are flooded, love. Crap, I think it’s only getting worse. We’ll leave in the morning as soon as it’s safe.”

Safe. 

Anna swallowed.

“Is that alright? Do you need us? We… we could try to drive there if you’re scared.”

“No!” Anna blurted, startling Elsa. “Wait, what? No-no-no-no, you guys stay there. Elsa and I will be fine, right, Els?” She shot her sister a quick look. Elsa nodded. “We’ll… we’ll have a girl’s night. Paint each other’s nails and stuff. Easy-peasy!”

Elsa nodded again. 

‘Easy-peasy’. Who ever said that? Why would Anna say that? It wasn’t easy-peasy at all.

Anna wasn’t an easily scared person. Sure, she used to snuggle with her sister during the scary parts of Sharkboy and Lavagirl, but that was in the past. She was a very responsible 18-years-old grown-up now. Planning a trip for her gap year once school was over and all. She wasn’t scared of spending a night without her parents, and she wasn’t scared of some rain. She wasn’t even scared of Elsa’s terrible cooking.

Something else that kept her on edge.

There was this boy at school. He was in her class. A senior, like her. He was funny. Cute, even. They liked to hang out during lunchtime and free periods. He was mostly nice to her, but there was this thing he’d said that day, just as a light rain began to fall. Just a tiny thing that stayed with her after school was over. 

Her tongue was stuck to the roof of her mouth.

“Are you trying to stab your meal?” Elsa asked. Anna realized she was holding her knife above the poor tortured pasta. She must have been punishing it without noticing.

“Sorry,” she murmured, then placed the knife down. “I’m just… just…”

She looked up, and her heart sank a little. Her sister’s eyes were downcast, her expression melancholic and somber. She avoided her sister’s gaze.

Anna’s mouth shut.

She’d been getting too caught up in her inner ramblings. 

“Are you alright? You look a bit down.”

Elsa smiled sadly and shook her head. 

“It’s nothing.”

Anna squinted, studying Elsa’s expression. Her lopsided smile, her delicate hands on the table, her avoidant gaze.

“I know what’s wrong. You’re thinking about Honeymaren again.”

Elsa exhaled through her nose. It was that nose-exhale laugh that was barely a laugh, but Anna always counted it as one to add to her mental list of times she made Elsa laugh.

“Is it that obvious?”

“I just know that face. Your secret is safe with me,” Anna promised, with a smile. “Now, spill it. What’s on your mind?”

Elsa shrugged.

“I… don’t know. I feel like I wasn’t honest with her. About… how I felt.”

Anna frowned, but didn’t interrupt.

Elsa breathed deeply. She still avoided Anna’s gaze.

“It wasn’t fair for her. That is all.”

“Don’t you think your sister should know?”

The boy’s voice echoed between her ears. Anna resisted the urge to sweep her head from side to side.

Now she was avoiding Elsa’s gaze, and she was sure she was blushing. It must be visible under the kitchen’s cold light. Her leg began bouncing, almost on its own. It did that when she had too much energy. Or when she was uneasy. 

A bitter feeling settled in her stomach. She could escape from her thoughts for some time but not forever. Everything was a potential reminder.

“Anna.”

Anna’s head snapped up. Her mind went blank for a moment. 

She found her sister’s eyes locked with hers. They were kind. Gentle.

“Thank you for asking,” Elsa said. Anna’s heart gave a leap, because those eyes were on her, and her sister was gazing at her and that was such an unbelievable honor, to be seen by this wonderful woman. 

Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth again. She clenched her teeth. She gulped audibly. Her vocal cords seemed to be tied up.

In that moment, the need to tell her everything seized her. It was the need to be honest with Elsa and the need to get it out of her mind. She craved comfort and reassurance.

She had Elsa’s full attention, but no matter how much Anna wanted it, she held herself back.

Instead, she smiled and stood up.

“Come on. I’ll do the dishes.”

Because here’s the thing: Anna was a loving, caring, protecting soul. She liked listening to boys at school complain about their many brothers. She liked hearing about her parents’ work. She even liked hearing Elsa talk about her crushes, her fears, her college classes, or her ex-girlfriends. As she saw it, providing a safe space and a willing ear was a big part of loving others,

Another big part of loving others was knowing when to keep quiet.

There simply were issues you wouldn’t discuss with some of your friends. That’s just a fact. You probably wouldn’t gush about boys or girls with your grandma, and you wouldn’t ask your friends in sophomore year for help setting up a bank account. Ever since Honeymaren, Anna had been careful not to burden Elsa too much. She didn’t tell her about her falling-out with her best friend, Kristoff, or about her doubts and anxieties concerning college. Right now, Elsa needed peace and support.

Likewise, some matters belonged in the therapist’s office, and not in family dinners. 

Anna wasn’t easily scared. This wasn’t fear. It was logic. It was making the smartest decision. Doing the right thing for the people you love. 

Doing the dishes was soothing. Under the hard splash of the water, she could almost drown out the memory of the boy’s words (“You do know you’re obvious, right? Does she know you’re this obsessed with her?”) and the rough rain hitting the roof. It was getting louder. Heavier. She wondered if power would go out. She wondered if her parents were alright half a city away.

“We should call them before heading to bed,” Elsa commented. Anna’s twisted mind extrapolated some very wicked thoughts out of Elsa’s wording.

“Y-yeah,” she agreed, and her mind couldn’t come up with anything smarter to say, so she bit her lip and decided to leave it at that instead of clumsily rambling and risking saying something she didn’t mean. 

Elsa waited for her to finish washing. It was awkward. Of the two, Anna was the only one who knew how to maintain a conversation (under normal circumstances, but sharing space with Elsa hadn’t felt like a normal circumstance in a very long time). So, Elsa, unable to come up with a thing to say, simply paced around the kitchen until Anna was done. She didn’t know why. Anna wasn’t providing much of a spectacle. 

They headed to bed a few minutes later. A strong wind had joined the rain in their torment, and they both mockingly swirled around the house and scratched the walls and windows with their twig-claws and their cloud-shawls. If you looked out the window, you wouldn’t see an inch of asphalt on the streets: they were completely hidden by a glistening layer of rainwater. If you opened the window, you’d hear the vertiginous slosh of water against water. When Anna was fourteen, she and her family had gone to see the Niagara Falls (Elsa had held her hand the entire time), and the sheer thunderous loudness could put this city rainfall to shame, but it was the closest comparison Anna could find. It was harsh. It was maddening. It was growing louder and Anna’s gut was twisted into a tighter and tighter knot. 

She gulped and decided not to look out the window.

She shot Elsa a quick half-assed goodbye and locked herself in her room, and then she sighed.

Safe at last.

Her room was a mess, but it was her mess. The kind of mess you would describe as encrypted data if you knew how encrypted data worked. Whatever. The point was that only Anna, with the use of her unique knowledge of her room’s jungle, could find lost phones, hairbands and socks among the piles of clothes and half-finished paper crafts scattered around the floor and on the carpet, which had been folded in half when Anna tripped over it, and she’d never brought herself to fix it. The boy band posters and continental maps on her wall were all about to fall off and her poor Duolingo Owl plushie somehow ended up under her bed. She rescued him, sat cross-legged on her bed, and hugged him to her chest, seeking some warmth and comfort. It… it was growing quite cold. She’d need to find another blanket. Somewhere.

She sent her parents a quick goodnight text, read some Supernatural fanfiction on her phone for a few minutes, and gave another try to her Duolingo course after being harassed by the feral green bird a little. She tried everything to distract herself from this odd empty feeling in her stomach.

It wasn’t that she was scared. Okay, sure: the loud whistling wind and the heavy rain did make her nervous, but that was ridiculous. She had no reason why. The one time her family had been stuck in a storm like this, they’d been driving down the road, in the dark, in the rain. A light flashed before them (a driver with broken headlights), and her dad hit the brakes. The wheels slid across the water. He lost control for a moment, her mother yelped, the car accelerated out of control and…

And then her father took control again. He’d steered the wheel in just the right way and drove them home safely. Anna didn’t even remember being scared back then. It had been like a rollercoaster for her, and she loved those. 

Her sister didn’t deal with it as nicely. She had an anxiety attack and refused to get in the car for the following week. Anna had decided to join her mutiny in solidarity, and they ended up walking to school together for some time. Anna wasn’t sure how she did it, but her mere presence and support seemed to calm Elsa’s nerves, even if they were only eleven and fourteen at the time, and neither knew what to do in scary situations.

Funnily enough, Anna wouldn’t say she knew any better at eighteen. Elsa was older, so hopefully she did. Hopefully, she’d figured out the way. 

Those were the main thoughts coursing through her mind when she heard her sister knock on her door.

“Anna? Are you awake?”

Anna… kind of froze. She gripped her plushie and faced the side of her room opposite to the door. Oh, what should she say? Was Elsa worried? Had she given her a reason to worry?

“No, I’m not!” Anna shouted back. Yes, alright. That would communicate she was awake if Elsa needed her, but she didn’t want to get up, all tied up with a little bit of humor to quell whatever anxieties were tormenting her big sister this time.

Anna’s anxieties, however? They squeezed her heart like a hand. Squeeze and release. Squeeze and release. Like a stress ball. Pounding blood. Into her ears. It was harsh and maddening.

A pause.

“I just wanted to say… if you need anything, I’ll be in my room.”

Anna nodded, even though Elsa couldn’t see her.

“Thanks!” 

Her own voice sounded so loud. So hysteric. Was she hysteric? She felt hysteric. Too loud. She was vaguely aware of Elsa’s footsteps retreating.

Her heart sprang painfully. She’d worried her. She didn’t mean to worry her, yet at the same time hearing her leave only filled her with deeper desperation. The wind howled outside. It shook the whole house. Rain seeped through every nook and cranny. Power would go out. Anna was sure of it. What if a cable post was knocked down by the wind? What if a tree did? There was one right next to Anna’s room. If the wind blew in just the right way it could crush her. 

She curled deeper into her covers. Oh, how she wished Elsa had kicked down the door and entered Anna’s room unannounced. She wished Elsa had stayed with her.

There had been a time in which Anna felt very safe in her sister’s arms, before she started to turn into something else. Back then, her hugs felt so warm and gentle and loving, like nothing could harm her as long as she stayed there. With time, her brain began to give them a different resignify them into something less wholesome. Something more… erotic. Anna couldn’t remember the last time she’d dared to embrace her sister.

When had that happened? Was it when Anna was in middle school and she began to admire her sister a bit more than usual for girls her age? Did she turn into what she was now when she realized what it meant? Was she born with it?

Anna was a brave girl, but the idea of being “born with it” was the most terrifying of all.

“You’re so obvious, Anna.”

It was stronger than her.

A low rumble in the distance. Loud. Louder. Followed by a flashing light.

Her heart stopped. Lungs stopped. Throat dried. Wind screamed and Branches rattled. Her muscles burned with tension as she gripped her plushie to her chest.

…Well, Elsa wasn’t coming for her. But she did offer an invitation. And… and she wouldn’t have to do anything. Anna would just sit there. In her room. It wasn’t odd or concerning for people to be anxious during storms. It was such a small and harmless weight to dump on Elsa’s shoulders, nothing at all like the words brewing at the bottom of Anna’s throat. Not a burden. Not something disturbing, scary, off-putting.

So she slid her legs off the bed, opened the door, and carefully tip-toed across the hallway, still holding the plushie, and then she knocked on Elsa’s door.

It took a moment.

“Come in.”

Anna sighed dramatically. She hesitated, but twisted the doorknob regardless and quietly slipped in.

Elsa’s room was nothing like hers. For starters, she had a huge periodic table on her wall. That should say enough about her place of dwelling. Still, cool science stuff aside, Anna could never help but notice the adorable baby pink bed covers on her bed, always so neatly laid, or her pristine wooden floors, the family photos hanging on the wall, on every spot free from scientific stuff and broadway posters. She had all of her hockey trophies arranged on a shelf, and a few embroidery supplies on her desk. On her bedside, there was a tiny door frame with a picture of her and Anna, on that Niagara Falls vacation. They looked so tiny and childish and innocent. 

Elsa was already in bed, but she was sitting up and turning on the bedside lamp as soon as Anna entered. She wore a slightly-too-flattering white nightgown. 

“Anna?” 

Her gentle raspy voice broke Anna out of her thoughts. She blinked.

“Uh?”

“Is everything alright?” Elsa asked. Her loose hair was flawless. How could her hair be so flawless?

“Y-you mean me? Yes! Yes, I’m… totally good,” she stammered, then shifted on her feet, wrung her hands together and said: “I just… I-it’s pretty rainy outside, isn’t it?”

Elsa opened her mouth to speak, but then another crash of thunder shook Anna’s eardrums, and next thing she knew, she was cowering under Elsa’s covers like a scared puppy. Head hidden and all. 

Her sister chuckled and stroked Anna’s head through the blankets.

“Are you still totally good?”

“…Maybe?” Anna squeaked. “I-I think I’ll be more good here.”

She could almost feel Elsa’s grin as her hand drifted down to pet Anna’s back.

“You know, I was wondering when we’d have a sleepover again,” she commented. “I worried you may think we’re too old for them.”

Anna’s head shot up from her blanket cocoon.

“What? You’re never too old for sleepovers!” She declared, at the outrageous claim. That got a laugh out of Elsa, and it was so beautiful and graceful, knowing she’d caused it made Anna’s heart soar.

“Then come here.” She laid down again, and Anna’s stomach flipped when she reached a hand across the bed and over her body. Eyes wide, brain dead, she could barely process what was going on until Elsa asked: “Do you want me to turn off the light?”

Oh. Oh, right. Yeah. The light.

Anna nodded. The whole goal was to fall asleep, after all. She, uh, she’d be fine without the light.

The lights went out with a click. 

Elsa settled in bed. 

Anna exhaled. 

Without any sound other than Elsa’s breathing, the swoosh of the leaves and the whistling of the wind felt louder. There were more trees on Elsa’s side. No shit they were louder. Their branches swatted and scratched the poor tortured window.

The thunder was getting closer.

It echoed louder every time. Closer every time. And it sounded more angry and violent than before. Anna’s heart found solace in Elsa’s closeness but it still wasn’t enough. 

Elsa seemed unaware of Anna’s growing restlessness. She needed a bit more.

“Elsa?” She whispered. Her sister hummed in response— a question. Anna could hear herself say the words in her mind but they sounded so pathetic and obvious she couldn’t bring herself to pronounce them— sisters didn’t say these things—, so instead, she just scooched closer, still hugging the plushie close as a barrier between her and Elsa, and an excuse to not wrap her arms around her. She timidly tucked her head under her chin.

Shame hit her right away— she was taking advantage of her sister’s ignorance. If she knew the truth, she’d never let her so close. Your family was meant to be your safe place. A refuge where you weren’t seen as a meal or an object of desire. Was this not the greatest form of betrayal? When you sought your family for safety and comfort, and they crossed the ultimate line by… by…

Elsa sighed and wrapped her arms around Anna, pulling her close. One of her hands delicately tangled into her hair.

For a moment, there was silence. And warmth. An unbreakable sense of love and security. All Anna could hear was Elsa’s beating heart and her breathing. Then, a kiss on the top of her hair.

“It’s okay, Anna,” she murmured. Anna blinked. Then blinked again. She opened her mouth to speak but couldn’t say a word. Elsa squeezed her tighter. “I got you,”

Anna’s eyes brimmed with tears. She held her breath and covered her mouth. It wasn’t true. It wasn’t right. Elsa didn’t know and she couldn’t know. It would hurt her so much, and all Anna wanted was to see her happy. And saying it out loud would mean it was true. That she could no longer hide from it. She had truly turned into something unredeemable. 

She thought of that photo of them, when they were little. 

When had that changed? When had she changed?

She shouldn’t be so close to her. This had been a huge mistake.

She sniffled.

“I’m sorry.”

She barely heard herself over the sound of rushing blood in her ears.

Elsa stiffened.

“For what?”

She sounded curious and worried at the same time, and Anna really should have shut her mouth, really shouldn’t have said anything at all. She was a hypocrite. She knew bringing this up was a horrible thing to do. 

“Is it because you came looking for me?” Elsa asked. Now Anna had to give her answers. Any kind of answer. She shouldn’t. She shouldn’t tell anything to anyone. This was her burden to carry and forcing someone else beneath it was cruel. 

She nodded. Elsa’s hand kneaded her shoulder.

“You don’t have to be sorry for that.”

Anna shrugged her shoulders up to her ears. She was a hypocrite. A hypocrite. She remembered that time on a week-long school trip when, texting Elsa late into the night, she’d asked her if he was okay. Was she okay? Realization of her feelings had hit right as she was leaving and it now plagued her every thought like a leech latched onto her heart. She couldn’t tear them out. The trip was supposed to be fun but all she could do was roll her thoughts over in her head, disseminating them like frogs, desperately trying to find proof that she was still herself, that she wasn’t changing, that she could have these feelings for someone else, that he could have a future. And then Elsa sent her a text— “I miss you”— and Anna couldn’t keep her hands to herself. She shouldn’t have replied at all. But they talked and talked and talked until Elsa noticed something was off and asked about it and Anna wrote “I’m just scared because I feel something I shouldn’t and I always thought I was good and clean and safe to be around but I’m scared I may be sick and gross and I don’t know what to do I think I may die if this is true and I don’t want anyone to know and I’m so sorry I’m scaring you with this I shouldn’t be telling you this at all and I feel like a hypocrite telling you all of this—.”

She’d deleted the whole wall of text.

“I’m just a bit sleepy.”

Then she tried to go to sleep. 

It should have been enough, shouldn’t it? Putting her thoughts into words helped her down the panic spike. Coming back home wasn’t as torturous as she’d feared. Seeing her sister wasn’t paralyzing or incapacitating. They could still play Mario Kart and watch bad Netflix originals together and sometimes, she could convince herself she’d been scared for nothing. The intensity dissipated. She felt safe again.

Then the panic came back. 

Lightning flashed again and her whole body tensed up, as if struck herself. Elsa’s hand rubbed circles on her back. 

“Anna,” she said. “Are you sure that’s all?”

Anna’s breath hitched. 

“I-I…”

She couldn’t.

Elsa wouldn’t force her. She knew that. Anna only had to say she didn’t want to talk about it, and she’d drop it. She had the power here. 

Yet her jaw was stuck open.

She heard thunder again. She’d come into Elsa’s bed in her own volition. She didn’t feel scared of thunder in her arms.

She could drop it. She could let the panic spike pass, but it would always come back, until she left forever (hopefully), until Elsa was nothing but a painful distant memory, but that wouldn’t make any of them any happier. A gaping wound left untreated. 

No! No! She couldn’t tell her the truth! She couldn’t admit to being the kind of person who shows up in the news for others to morbidly gawk at, the kind of people who hurt their own flesh and blood, who hurt the people who trusted them the most. Her sister would try her damn hardest but she’d never be able to look at her in the same way. She wasn’t just ill. She was becoming part of the illness itself. It defined her whether she liked it or not. 

She’d never tell anyone. But if she never told anyone, she feared the illness would never heal. That the panic would never go away for good. Oh, it would be so much easier if Elsa forced her to confess, if she had no choice at all. She wanted her to knock down her door, insist until Anna had nowhere to escape and then embrace her and promise she’d love her forever, regardless of what Anna changed into. 

But Elsa didn’t insist after her original question. She waited silently for Anna to speak.

And someday, she’d stop asking, because she knew Anna wouldn’t reply.

One day, she’d stop knocking on her door and wait for Anna to come looking for her instead.

One day, she may even believe Anna was alright, and withdraw her offer of support. Then what kind of terrifying things would Anna have to do to feel her arms around her again?

Was that what she wanted?

Yes.

No.

No. 

One of her hands released the plushie and gripped Elsa’s nightgown.

“I need to tell you something,” she choked out.

Elsa’s hand on her back stopped.

“I’m here,” she reassured her, and Anna nearly sobbed.

She inhaled very deeply.

“I had a talk with this boy at school today, and I’ve been thinking about it all day.” She screwed her eyes shut. “I think there’s something wrong with me. F-for some time. I feel things that aren’t like me. Like… Like they’re things someone else would feel. And what does that say about me!?”

“I’m… sorry, I don’t think I understand,” Elsa said.

“Right,” Anna sniffled. “I’m sorry. I know this is coming out of nowhere and…”

“No, no, no!” Elsa quickly sat up and turned on the bedside lamp. “I want to hear you. What do you need?”

Anna’s heart swelled with love. How could she so easily capture her affections all over again?

She sat up with her. Their legs dangled down the bed. Elsa had some very pretty legs.

“I…” her heart pounded so quickly. “I feel things that are… wrong. And I don’t know how I could have these feelings! I really don’t want them. I want…” She wanted to be good. At school, at home, with her friends, she wanted to be the funny one. The cute one. The kind one. This huge stain in her heart changed that. It made her feel like a liar. “I feel like I’m not… me. Like this is so wrong I-I��m gonna disappear.”

Elsa breathed, slowly.

“It feels like a loss of identity,” she concluded. 

Anna nodded. A complete loss of the self. 

“Exactly,” she exhaled. Then she gulped. Her heart punished her ribs and it hurt but it had been easier than she thought.

A huge weight was lifted off her shoulders.

Elsa frowned, and looked Anna in the eye.

“Anna… listen. Whatever it is that you’re feeling, you’re still you.”

Her gaze was piercing and hard and protective and Anna could feel her throat go dry.

“But…”

“No. I want you to listen.” Elsa grasped her hands, and only then seemed to notice the plushie Anna had brought along. She smiled at it. “Do you remember why I got you this?”

“Because you were making fun of me?”

“Only slightly. I saw it in a store and remembered how excited you were about learning korean for your boy bands.”

“Their music is good! People are just mean.”

Elsa chuckled. They’d gone over it a million times already.

“I remember how you went over twelve different instruments in elementary school, until you discovered you preferred singing. I wish you would sing to me someday.”

Anna’s face burned. 

“That would be very embarrassing.”

“I think you would be lovely.”

She had to duck her head and avoid Elsa’s gaze this time.

“You always liked arts and crafts, too. But you want to study social sciences in college. You always loved history, too. I still have that book about brave women of history somewhere. You had me read Joan D’Arc’s story out loud before you could read on your own. That one was always your favorite. You also kept a spider as a pet below your bed for a month because you said spiders deserved love, too, and you have maps hanging on your room because you want to travel the world, and you’re still deciding where to go on your gap year.” Elsa brushed her cheek with the back of her knuckles. Her stomach twisted and leaped. It was vertiginous. “You’re so much more than what you think you may feel, and I don’t think you’ve changed at all.” She tucked her hair behind her ear— “You’re so beautiful, Anna—,” and took a deep breath. “It’s why I fell in love with you.”

Anna blinked. Then frowned. Her mouth opened and closed. She looked at Elsa looking for a hint that she may be kidding but she looked so serious and shy and hopeful— but she was into acting after all, wasn’t she?

Anna coughed. 

“Thank you.”

Elsa gave her a confused look.

“For what?”

“For trying to make me feel better”

Her frown deepened.

“You think I’m lying to you?”

Crap.

“Wait, what? That's… wait, that’s not what I meant.”

“I’m trying to be honest with you!”

Anna shook her head.

“But… but…” 

Elsa watched her, waiting. She was so elegant and regal and beautiful and human. 

“But you’re so perfect!”

Elsa averted her gaze.

“I’d doubt that,” she said. Her chest heaved. “I’m… Anna, I’m telling you this because… hold on, I’m understanding this correctly, right?” Fear crossed her eyes. “You feel the same way?”

Anna’s brain whirred like a train out of rail.

“Y-you mean…?”

Elsa nodded.

She gulped. Her stomach sank with shame. She covered her face.

“I didn’t want you to find out.”

“No, no, I’m…” Elsa vacillated. She was just as lost. “I’m glad you told me.”

…Okay, alright, alright. Anna needed to take a deep breath. And drink some water.

“I’m gonna get some water,” she said.

It took her like half an hour to find a bottle (one she wisely spent internally freaking out, because her sister felt the same way hersisterfeltthesamewayhersisterfeltthesameway), and when she returned, Elsa was right where she left her, sitting on her bed, staring at the periodic table on her wall and quietly reciting each element to calm herself down.

She had no business being so adorable.

“…So, you feel the same way?” Elsa asked a few moments later, after they both exchanged the bottle a few times.

“Yeah,” Anna replied. It felt thrilling and terrifying and liberating to say it out loud. “And you’re not…?”

“I’m not lying to make you feel better,” Elsa promised, leaning in and smiling at her. “I-I truly can’t believe it.”

Anna choked on her water, like a genius hersisterfeltthesameway—

“I can’t believe it either.”

She nearly jumped out of her skin when Elsa’s hand fell on hers, and it took her a second to realize this was permission— an invitation— her sister felt the same way— and she was allowed to squeeze back. 

“W-what does this mean?” She asked. “I mean… what now?”

“It doesn’t mean we need to be in a relationship,” Elsa stated. The mere mention of a relationship nearly gave Anna a heart attack (the good kind). “We should… We should think things through. Take our time.” She glanced at the curtains. “It’s late. We can talk in the morning.”

“Y-yeah. You’re right.”

Neither of them moved. 

Then, Elsa’s thumb trailed over Anna’s cheekbone, shily brushed over her chin. Warmth spread across Anna’s stomach and heart, and under Elsa’s loving, approving gaze, for once she felt like herself.

Her sister felt the same way.

“Can I kiss you?”

It was an unexpected surge of courage— she must be high on it. The words felt like dipping below the waves, like the vertigo of looking over the railing and watching the water fall.

Elsa smiled, shyly, nervously, and with a hooked finger guided Anna forward.

She’d never touched something so soft, so kind and gentle. She’d never felt so safe and loved. 

“You’re still you.”

Still me.

She tightened her grip on Elsa’s hand. 

The kiss was chaste. They pulled away. Hearts racing. So quickly. So loudly. They couldn’t even hear the rain.

Elsa beamed.

“Come on.” She tugged at her hand. “Let’s go to sleep.”

Perhaps it was raining outside. Anna couldn’t hear it. She could only hear Elsa’s rapid happy heart against her ear. Her eyes misted over but for an entirely new reason. She squeezed her sister’s waist.

“I love you, Elsa.”

She could almost hear Elsa’s heart picking up speed.

“I love you too.”

[hb-pickle]

✏✏ Frozen 2 Manga: Strengths and Weaknesses (Review) ✏✏

🌟🌕🌟I would give the Frozen 2 Manga a 9.2/10!!! (But this score is very very subjective for reasons I will explain now)🌟🌕🌟

You can purchase an online copy of the F2 Manga HERE for $10.99 (It's important to support artist so GO BUY THE BOOK)

Strengths:

+ Art (obviously ♡): Each page and every picture is hyper-detailed and gorgeous. Every scene stays true to the original, but takes creative liberties to give us new angles, interpretations, and expression which makes the book a truly unique experience. I would highly recommend buying this book, solely for art quality alone because it really is that good. Some scenes take up the full page, and are so beautiful that they could genuinely be movie posters, it's that amazing.

+ Songs: For relatively obvious reasons (songs being repetitive, translation problems, page space and time), the manga couldn't re-write each Frozen 2 song word-for-word. So instead they chose to re-write everything into a type of poetic, internal dialogue. I actually like this a lot, and consider it a strength because it gives us a deeper understanding into how the characters feel and what exactly they want/think. Example:

"In this limitless moment, the things that remain constant are precious. This happiness is what we all wish for. This nurtures love." - Some Things Never Change

"I must not be too curious... I cannot risk disturbing the happiness I've finally found." - Into The Unknown

I especially loves these two lines because I think it nicely emphasizes and centers Elsa's empathy with her family, desire to keep them safe, and shows that she cares about their happiness, just like her own.

+ Internal Dialogue: Its few and far between, but the manga adds bits of Elsa's internal dialogue here and there, which really emphasizes/clarifies her feelings, which I really like. Ex: It clearly shows that Elsa is afraid of worrying Anna about the mysterious voice (right before the 2nd lullaby).

+ Retelling of Frozen (2013) by Olaf: This is where the manga took the most creative liberties and it really shines through because the scenes is a lot more funny and creative! There are costume changes and a lot more sparkle and glitter and exaggeration!

- - -

Weaknesses:

+ Neglects several character arcs: A lot of small scenes were removed, so much so that the book completely removes several character's arcs/sevral character's most memorable moments.

This is the biggest drawback of the manga (especially bad for Anna) and is definitely a valid dealbreaker for fans who are/were invested in the non-Elsa characters. One thing I've noticed from fans and non-fans alike, is that people LOVED Anna and deeply resonated with her. People adored her "Next Right Thing" moment, and genuinely resonated with her loss and concerns. But despite her main character role and her beloved status among fans, she is the one who loses most of her character scenes. Because of these scene omissions, her motivations aren't set up and her concerns are downplayed and it's truly a shame.

Just for Anna, they remove:

Anna's conversation with Olaf about change, "fear of nothing being permanent", and "Anna not being scared because she has her family" (in the pumpkin patch).

In the song "Some Things Never Change", Anna, Olaf, and Kristoff parts are removed, so you can only hear the thoughts and feelings of Elsa.

The second half of Anna and Elsa's fight, where Elsa tells Anna she can't come with her to Ahtohallan is gone. So there is no scene of Anna begging to stay and telling Elsa "I just don't want you dying, trying to be everything for everyone else too. Don't do this alone. Let me help you, please."

Anna's desperation to protect Elsa in some scenes is definitely downplayed. Ex: "THAT'S MY SISTER!" scene at the fight with angry gale is gone + Anna running away panicked from Kristoff's 3rd proposal (when she realizes she doesn't know where Elsa is).

The ending half of "The Next Right Thing" is extremely limited, and neglects the original's emphasis on perseverance through the pain, despite feeling lost.  The whole scene is surprisingly short as well, with Anna going through the motions very quickly (unlike the movie, which really dwelled in her pain).

- Kristoff:

In the manga, there is no hint at all that he doubts his relationship with Anna, so that full arc is gone.

His part in 'Some Things Never Change' is gone.

His third proposal attempt (at the dam) is removed

"Lost In The Woods" song / "Reindeers are better Than People" talk with Sven is gone.

Olaf:

His talk with Anna about being scared of change is gone (in the pumpkin patch).

Again, his part in 'Some Things Never Change' is gone.

Olaf's song "When I'm Older" is gone (Which detailed his fear of change and hope that everything will get better).

Olaf and Anna's bonding moment (after Elsa rejects them), where Anna says "you have every right to be angry" is gone/downplayed.

Mattias:

Mattias and Anna's "Next Right Thing" talk is gone.

He never ask Anna about Halima, he never reunites with Halima in Arendelle, and there is no photograph joke.

Ryder:

All three of Ryder's scenes with Kristoff are removed, aka "Some of us have never seen a clear sky", "the Northuldra know the best way to propose!", and the scene where both Kristoff and Ryder talk to reindeer.

This was most definitely because Ryder's character was tied to Kristoff's marriage insecurities, but they decided to remove that element from Kristoff wholesale, so Ryder had nothing.

Honeymaren & Yelena:

During the campfire scene, Elsa and Honeymaren don't sing the small piece of "All Is Found", don't make the joke about lullabies being creepy, and they don't pet the baby reindeer.

There is no scene of Elsa reuniting with Yelena and Honeymaren, telling them "Ahtohallan is beautiful". Honeymaren never ask Elsa to stay in the Enchanted Forest either.

Now don't get me wrong! These characters still have really beautiful art and are present. They have chibis and expressive faces/designs and are a pleasure to look at. They have their own unique scenes and matter and help the story move along, they just take a step down from their original film adaptation.

[I know the list for Anna was really long, but she is still all over the manga acting cute and relatable. I swear. The book is 160 pages long, there is plenty to marvel at.]

+ Whitewashing the Northuldra: The Northuldra are indeed whitewashed (completely white skin on par with Elsa & Anna) and it's very bad. I genuinely don't know why they chose to do this considering Mattias had ALL his melanin. There is not much to say about it, but it is uncomfortable to look at and is a very valid critique on the artist.

- - -

Conclusion / TL;DR:

If you are interested in art/love Frozen 2 fanart, this book definitely delivers on that artistic level. If you just want a pretty and easy retelling, then this book is for you! But if you were especially connected to the roles of Anna and the more minor characters, to the point where their absence might off put you, you may want to sit this one out. I would offer you pretend this book is just elaborate fanart by a huge Elsa stan (so you don't take the absences to heart so much), but the choice is yours.

[thecassadilla]

Bloom

Pairing: Kristanna

Word Count: 2,488/AO3

Summary: Though their initial meeting was the result of an unfortunate situation, Anna and Kristoff begin to grow something wonderful, together. 

Author’s Note: Hi everyone! This is my contribution for Kristanna Week Day 1 - Red! I had a billion ideas for this color because of all of the emotion attached to it but I couldn’t execute any of them well enough. As is typical for me, I finished this very last minute (aka at 3am). Also, I know nothing about flowers lol. Enjoy!!!

The first time that they met had been a pure coincidence. Kristoff had picked up a late shift at his parents’ flower shop on Valentine’s Day, when he knew the only customers would be the desperate, last-minute “I need to bring some type of flower home or my significant other will k*ll me” people. He always took the shift as a courtesy to his adoptive parents, so they could enjoy a night off and go to dinner or a movie and celebrate the holiday.

He was neither here nor there about Valentine’s Day. He didn’t think it was a meaningless holiday like many of his single friends did, but he wasn’t necessarily fond of it, either - mainly because of the association to the flower shop and all of the craziness that ensued in the weeks leading up to it. He was expected the night to go exactly as they had in Valentines Day pasts; a few late night stragglers but otherwise quiet.

What was particularly unexpected that night was when the little bell on the door of the shop jingled and a young couple walked in near closing time. 

The man couldn’t even be bothered to pull the phone away from his ear before telling the woman, “Here’s my credit card, pick something fast so we could get the hell out of here.”

He watched in silence as the woman, on the verge of tears, slowly perused the shop while her boyfriend-slash-husband or whoever he was waited by the door and continued his phone conversation. 

“Can I help you?” Kristoff asked when she came close enough to the cash register. She was quite beautiful; bright blue eyes, a dusting of freckles across her nose and cheeks, which happened to be rosy from the cold weather, and long, auburn hair that stood out against her plum-colored pea coat and grey knit hat. He also couldn’t help but notice the large, sparkly diamond ring on her left hand. Married.

She shakily sighed, the tears pooling in her eyes threatening to spill over at any second. “I know it’s late, but do you have any roses left?”

He nodded. “We do.”

“Those are traditional for Valentine’s Day, right?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he answered.

“Can I have a dozen roses, please?”

“Sure. How do you want them?”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you want them with babies’ breath? Wrapped in paper or in a vase? Or -”

She shook her head. “You know what...never mind. Thank you for your help.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” she said, her voice cracking. “Valentine’s Day is almost over, anyway.”

He glanced up at the clock on the wall; it was quarter to eleven, which meant that there was just over an hour left of the holiday. His heart was breaking for her. 

“Anna!” her husband sternly called. “Let’s go!”

She turned toward the entrance of the shop. “Thank you again.”

“Wait,” he said, plucking a red rose from the pile behind the register and holding it out to her. “I feel really bad.”

“You shouldn’t be the one to feel bad.”

“Please take it.”

The tiniest inkling of a smile appeared on her quivering lips as she accepted the flower. “Thank you.”

He nodded sympathetically, and watched as she walked back over to her husband.

“Excellent, you didn’t spend much,” the man said smugly, snatching the credit card from her hands. He was still on the phone, which was now sandwiched between his shoulder and his ear. “Are you satisfied enough to go home now?”

She looked back in his direction one last time as her husband grabbed her by the hand and pulled her out of the shop, jostling the bell once again. Kristoff was so enraged that he was practically seeing red; he’d seen plenty people come in over the years and buy flowers last minute, but that had to be the worst instance he’d ever seen. He couldn’t fathom how a grown man could treat his wife so...poorly. If that was what happened in public, he couldn’t imagine what happened in private. With his jaw clenched, he made it through the remainder of his shift, counted the cash register, and booked it out of there as quickly as he could, stewing in his own anger for the rest of the night and much of the following day.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The second time they met was intentional, though not on his behalf; nearly two weeks had passed, and Kristoff had managed to put the entire incident behind him - or so he thought. He’d finished his shift and was packing up to leave on a Saturday afternoon when one of his coworkers came to the break room and grabbed his attention.

“Kristoff, there’s a young woman looking for you.”

He furrowed his eyebrows. “What?”

“A young woman asked if she could speak to the tall, blond guy and you’re the only person that fits that description.”

He sighed, mentally preparing himself to get an earful from a woman whose husband bought flowers for his mistress or something equally as ridiculous. It happened quite frequently and he was always the one to take the heat as opposed to the person who’d actually caused the problem. 

Instead, he was quite shocked when he walked out onto the sales floor and found the woman from Valentine’s Day, in the same plum-colored pea coat and grey hat. Her left hand was gripping onto the strap of her purse by her shoulder, and he couldn’t help but notice that her ring finger was sans ring.

“Hi, can I help you?”

“Hi,” she said in a small voice. “I’m not sure if you remember me, but I came in right before you closed on Valentine’s Day...with my ex-fiancé.”

“I remember,” he confirmed. His initial suspicions had been wrong; the man wasn’t her husband, after all. 

“I just had to come in and thank you again,” she explained. “It was such a kind gesture, and I really needed it that night. You really have no idea how much it meant to me.”

Not wanting to bring up the rottenness of the situation and rub it in like salt in a wound, he simply nodded. “No problem.”

“I can’t even imagine what that must’ve looked like to you...how bad it looked.”

He shrugged. “I’ve seen some crazy stuff.” 

“I can only imagine,” she stated. “If you’re free, I’d really love to buy you a coffee or something from the café next door to say thank you.”

He waved his hands dismissively, slightly flustered at the offer. “You don’t have to do that, it really wasn’t a big deal.”

“It was to me,” she said meekly. “I want to express my gratitude.”

He faltered for a moment; if it would make her feel better, then there was really no harm in agreeing to go along. “Okay.”

The tension in her face melted away. “Great.”

“Let me just grab my jacket.”

He grabbed his belongings, waved goodbye to his coworkers and then met her back on the sales floor. Without another word, they left the shop.

“I don’t believe I caught your name,” she mentioned once they had made it outside.

“Kristoff.”

“I’m Anna,” she said, smiling as he held open the door to the café for her. They managed to snag a table by the window, and once they sat down, she asked, “How do you take your coffee?”

“Black,” he answered. “And the smallest size they have, otherwise I’ll be awake all night.”

“Got it,” she nodded, walking over to the cashier. 

He rested his arms on the table, waiting for her to come back but slightly eager to leave and go about the rest of his day. She returned a few minutes later, setting the two cups on the table and sitting across from him.

“So, you must know quite a bit about flowers being that you work for a florist.”

“I do,” he confirmed. “My folks own the shop. I’m helping them out while I’m working on my degree. I’ll probably still help them out once I graduate, though.”

“That’s so nice,” she smiled. “Do you have a favorite flower?”

He shook his head. “I don’t. I associate different flowers with different occasions, so that may be why.”

“My absolute favorites are sunflowers. But I love roses, too. And gardenias, and lilies. I guess I like everything,” she laughed, jovial for a moment before her expression turned somber. “You know, I wouldn’t be sitting here if you hadn’t handed me that rose, so if it’s okay with you, I want to explain what you saw that night and the aftermath.”

“Go for it,” he encouraged. Admittedly, he was quite curious, even though he knew that it wasn’t really his business. 

“Obviously, it was Valentine’s Day. I wasn’t expecting flowers or chocolate or anything really, but my ex and I would always exchange gifts on holidays. We had just got engaged in December and I knew he spent a lot on the ring so I didn’t have any expectations for this year, but I still got him a gift,” she explained. 

He nodded along as she spoke, not wanting to interrupt.

“He got home late and spent the rest of the night on the phone, ignoring me - which isn’t unusual for him, but I was hoping that we’d spend some time together because it was a special day. I asked him if he wanted to go out to dinner, but he’d already eaten with someone...I’m assuming it was another woman. Anyway, he got off the phone long enough to tell me that if I really wanted chocolate, then I could wait until the day after when it would all be marked down, and that we could go to the flower shop near closing because the flowers would probably be really cheap - I don’t think that’s true, though.”

“It isn’t,” he verified. 

“By the time we got to your shop, I was pretty upset because of the way he had been treating me all day, but it only got worse once we were inside. I was barely able to keep it together, and it wasn’t until you - a complete stranger - showed me the tiniest bit of compassion that I realized how bad my situation was and how badly I needed to get out of it.”

She took a deep breath before continuing. “I broke up with him. By the time we got back to the car I was crying, and he got mad that I was disrupting his call and we had a huge fight. It ended with me throwing the ring in his face and moving out.”

He hesitated for a moment, not wanting to say the wrong thing. “I’m glad you were able to get out of that.”

“Me too,” she nodded. “I think I knew it had to end for a long time - even when I said ‘yes’ to getting engaged. But what really solidified it was when you handed me that flower - it reminded me that people who care about others still exist.”

“Anyone who works there would’ve done the same,” he chuckled, trying to divert the credit away from himself. 

“I’ve spoken to a few friends and I recommended your family’s flower shop to them. They should spend their money at a business that actually cares about its customers.”

“Thanks, that means a lot.”

She nodded, a smile gracing her lips. “It’s the least I could do.”

They talked a little while longer before bidding each other goodbye and going their separate ways. In all honesty, Kristoff was happy for her; she’d escaped a bad relationship and she seemed to be in a much better place despite the fact that little time had passed. Even though he imagined he’d never see her again, he could rest easy knowing that she wouldn’t be trapped in a loveless marriage.

It didn’t quite play out the way he imagined, though. Frequently, she’d pop into the shop and distract him, following him around as he added water to the vases or fixed the arrangements, only laying low when another customer would come in. He didn’t mind the distraction at all; it made time go faster and she was fun to talk to. 

It wasn’t until a hot, summer afternoon in June that he decided to do something about their relationship. Anna came into the shop clad in a red sundress, accessorized with a floppy, wide-brim hat and oversized sunglasses right before his shift was due to end. 

“Hi, Kristoff,” she smiled, pulling the sunglasses off of her nose and hooking them onto the front of her dress. “Did you get in any sunflowers yet?”

“We did,” he confirmed. “We got a batch that bloomed early this year.”

She clapped her hands together. “That’s so exciting! May I purchase a bouquet of them?”

“Sure,” he said, walking over to where they were being kept, fully aware that she was following him. While she often came in to visit, she seldom purchased any flowers. She usually just came in to keep him company and relentlessly flirt. “Any special occasion?”

“It’s my birthday,” she answered, a slight blush creeping across her cheeks. 

“Oh!” he exclaimed, slightly embarrassed that he didn’t know - to his recollection, they’d never discussed birthdays. “Happy birthday!”

“Thank you,” she beamed. “I figured I may as well treat myself to my favorite flowers on my birthday, you know?”

“Of course,” he agreed, though in his head he’d already decided that she wasn’t going to pay for the flowers. It was her birthday, after all - they should be gifted to her. “Do you have any special plans?”

“I’m probably going to go out with some friends over the weekend, but not today.”

“I’d love to take you out to dinner,” he said, before quickly adding, “If you’re up for it.”

She nodded, biting down on her lip. “That would be really nice.”

They walked back to the counter, and he arranged the flowers in white and tan tissue paper, securing them with a red bow that matched her dress. 

“How much do I owe you?” she asked, opening her purse and digging for her wallet.

“Don’t be silly. They’re on me.”

“You’re such a sweetheart, you don’t have to do that.”

“It’s your birthday,” he reminded her. “I want you to have them.”

He handed them to her and she cradled them in her arms. “Thank you, Kristoff.”

“I’m going to go clock out and then we can go?”

She nodded excitedly and when he returned, he took her by the arm and led her out of the shop, the bell jingling as the door opened and they stepped out into the sunshine.

What had started as something so rotten had bloomed into something beautiful. And for every occasion from that point forward, there were flowers to match; roses on Valentine’s Day, poinsettias at Christmastime, and of course, sunflowers for Anna’s birthday.

[shorties-unite]

A Comprehensive List of Reasons why I Cried in the Year 2020

JANUARY

- Ex texting “who’s this?”

- Watching Hannah Montana, Robby is such a good dad, made me miss my dad

- A story about an old couple where one of them is forgetting. Imagine being in love. Imagine forgettting. Scary but beautiful

February

- LaDarius’s brother crying when Navarro won nationals

- Had an argument with brother cause he didn’t get that I can’t just like anyone

March

- Frozen II a little bc of how boyband-y kristoff’s love song was, mostly bc of Show Yourself

- Got home bc of corona virus, made my brother mad just by existing. Also I’m probably just exhausted from the weekend

- Can’t deal with no schedule bc of corona and miss GC after ONE DAY.

April

- more breakdown about no schedule and musculoskeletal Anatomy

- Thought about Louis Tomlinson’s family and then saw a video of Simon saying supportive stuff when he performed at XFactor after his mum died

- Another vid about Louis god he’s amazing

- Louis Tomlinson

- Mr Robot

- Mr Robot again but like big time

- My Robot part 3

- Interpersonal Skills essay research

- Mr Robot part four I knew it was coming but god damn rami you wound me

- One tear for Phineas and Ferb

- Fuckin rami, fucking robots, makes me sad that that’s a real thing

- Mr Robot the finale, and definitely not anything else that I may or may not have found out about today because I’m a bad bitch and being sad about boys again would be dumb

May

- Got super anxious about interpersonal skills bst, cried in front of tutor during test

- Coughed so hard I cried, x2 but Idk if that counts

- A short story about a dude marrying a dead girl

June

- Mum unsuccessful in competitive process

- 13 reasons why 2nd last ep got me teary cause Troye and Winston and Alex and Charlie

- Decided to rewatch DEH and feel things

- Last episode of 13rw ew

July

- Twice watching Hamilton

- It chap 2 got me a lil cause of course it did

- Louis tweeted for the 10 year anniversary, he thanked everyone and tagged all the boys, even zayn

- Queer eye got me tearing up, frick man

August

- mum and little sister leave after their trip for sister’s formal dress and I missed having ppl around so it was really great to see them and now I’m lonely

September

- New phineas and ferb day

October

- Was anxious all day, forgot to eat before 3pm, got teary because I was standing too close to a group of loud teenage boys with bad haircuts in a public place and couldn’t get away

- Later that night, I think I’m still just anxious and also I have jealousy

- Again, this time watching a @dannyphantom.exe tik tok but also still feeling things so I’m blaming that

- Roman calling Virgil “brave”

- Kathy Johnson beam story in Defying Gravity on YouTube

- “Hoping This Cold Blue Water Scrubs me Clean and Spits me out Again” ty for the rec O_____

- Onward x2 (one when Ian realised how his brother had been there for him, and one when barley gets to say goodbye to his dad but Ian is stuck behind a rock and can’t go to them)

- The Keri Straugh story

- Watching new girl with mum

November

- Girl Meets World x2

- Oh look Girl Meets World again not Maya’s dad

- Glee, Kurt’s dad almost died okay it’s sad

- 5.5x at youngest sister’s dance concert

- Glee again, Jean’s funeral

- Watched that Netflix short if anything happens I love you, I don’t think it’s as sad as ppl say but I’m not American soooo

December

- Got cancelled on by T____ for a third time, felt bad about getting cancelled and ignored then sister asked if I was okay and it was very nice but I was not

- Got sad bc I don’t like my surfers eye and no one will listen to me complain about it

- Dance express senior gala

- Mr Stark I don’t feel so good

- Endgame tho man

- Got yelled at by manager for not helping supervisir B____ when I was one of the only ones that had set up anything and it felt unfair

- On Christmas bc I have to make a call to apple support to figure out my trade in

- Cried after trying to trade in phone bc I didn’t want to make a second phone call to Apple

- Got emo in sc bc of wanting to be included in things but then friend who it was sort of directed at saw it and now I have to explain it and the whole point of posting it is getting it out without hurting people but it still feels like it hurts people (ps pretty sure I discovered I have a fear of abandonment and neglect)

[betweenpaperpages]

Hear Me Still: Chapter Eight

Summery: A new store-front is set to open on main street in Storybrooke and with it brings new resident Mr. Gold to the center of attention. While he looks forward to this new step in business, it is yet unknown if his deafness will set him back once again.

Beta: @ishtarelisheba

Read on AO3!

[Chapter One] [Chapter Two] [Chapter Three] [Chapter Four] [Chapter Five][Chapter Six] [Chapter Seven]

Chapter Eight: Safe With Me

_______________________________________________________

“Belle.”

Belle turned the page of her book carefully, her eyes following the flow of words as the narrator continued to speak between the lines of the story. Her free hand wrapped around the ceramic mug of coffee next to her, the heat seeping into her skin as it seemed forgotten. 

“Belle.”

Her eyes continued to track the words, bouncing up to the previous paragraph to reread the twist that threw the protagonist into a new dilemma. 

“Earth to Belle!”

Blue eyes shot up to where Ruby stood in front of her, one hand on her hip and the other grasping the handle of the coffee pot, a single eyebrow raised in question. 

“Were you in a trance or something? I was trying to get your attention for nearly five minutes,” Ruby complained, shaking her head indulgently.

“Sorry, Ruby, sometimes I get so focused I forget the world outside my book.” She laughed. 

“Reading something good then?” Ruby asked, leaning forward over the table to take a look, only for Belle to flip it shut and hold it up, putting up the cover of Jane Austin’s Pride and Prejudice for display. 

“Oh.” She deflated, looking disappointed. “I thought maybe you were reading something… spicy.” Ruby offered Belle an over exaggerated wink to push her point across. 

“Only you would think to read that material in public,” Belle commented, shaking her head affectionately. 

Ruby gave a shrug, shifting her weight to the opposite hip. “Small towns, limited options, what can I say? Everyone has needs, even bookworms like yourself.”

Granny stepped out from the kitchen to find her granddaughter, a well-worn apron wrapped around her dress with matching oven gloves on her hands. “Ruby Anita Lucas - I need you behind the counter, I have to get these pies out of the oven.”

“I’m just refilling Belle’s coffee, Granny.”

“Her cup isn’t as deep as the ocean! I need you back here. I don’t have eyes in the back of my head and I can’t have these pies burning,” she reprimanded her granddaughter. Ruby huffed, her shoulders drooping. “I’ll be right there!”

Granny offered Belle a warm smile and a wink before disappearing back into the kitchen, presumably to save her bakes from the oven. 

“How about drinks tonight? Rabbit Hole at eight? First round is on me,” Ruby offered, finally refilling Belle’s coffee mug. “Count me in.” 

xxxxx

The Rabbit Hole was not the classiest place in comparison, but for a small town dive bar, it did its job well enough. If you looked past the occasional drunk patron and the ill-placed dart board, one could even say it was alright. 

The smell of spilled beer and rush of heat from the summer weather greeted her as Belle entered the bar. She received a nod of greeting from the bartender where he stood cleaning the counter next to where Leroy was having a drink. She returned it with a quick smile before heading back to the usual table they occupied, finding Ruby already there with a drink in hand. 

“Getting started without me, Rubes?” she asked, hanging her purse on the knob of the chair as she took her seat. 

Ruby laughed, raising her drink to be on display. “Hardly! This is my first one. I invited Anna out, but she’s in the bathroom.” 

“Great! I haven’t had the chance to see her lately with the summer programs running at the library.” 

“You need to take more time for yourself,” Ruby pointed out. Belle couldn’t help but roll her eyes at the comment. “I take plenty.” “A soak in the bath with a glass of wine and a dirty romance novel don’t count as personal time,” Ruby pointed out, pushing a gin and tonic across the table to her. “Maybe if we get you hooked up with someone you’ll dedicate yourself less to work.”

She shook her head, her curls rustling behind her shoulders. “I love my job. Besides, we all know how bad my dating history is. Do we really need to add to it?” “What are we adding to?” Anna asked as she walked up and took her seat, setting her drink down. 

“Belle’s dating history,” Ruby answered. 

Anna squealed excitedly, “Oh! We can do that! Should be easy enough.” 

“I don’t want to add to it, Anna,” Belle pointed out. “I want to end it. I’m tired of one bad date after another. I want something to last long term.” 

“Like true love!” She sighed dreamily, clasping her hands together. 

“Hold onto your glitter, Sparkle Pants.” Ruby laughed, patting Anna’s shoulder. “Not everyone can land it like you did on your second swing.”

Belle laughed lightly, stirring her drink with the straw. “Didn’t Kristoff actually ‘sweep you off your feet’ because you nearly fell into the college fountain?” “It still counts,” Anna protested, crossing her arms under her chest and pouting. 

“And he loves you very much,” Belle commented, smoothing over any of her ruffled feathers from their teasing. “How is your sister’s, by the way?” Anna relaxed quickly at the change of topic, instantly forgiving her friend’s light-hearted jabs. “Her love life? On hold for now. Elsa wants to finish her PhD before she even considers the notion.” 

“I understand that.” Belle nodded in agreement. “Hard enough just to balance everyday life with studying, let alone romance on top of it.” 

“Well, since you're done on that front, it just means we can focus on the second part now!” Ruby announced, once again redirecting this on her target. 

Belle rolled her eyes, busying herself with taking a long and deep sip of her drink as she watched the two of them. Might as well let them have their fun for now, she thought. 

Belle set her drink aside, standing with a stretch of her shoulders as she decided to rack up one of the pool tables for a game. Anna and Ruby seemed to need a minute to put their heads together in private to discuss their strategy and gather a list of options for Belle’s love affairs. 

Just as she finished racking the table and applied chalk to her pool cue, the two of them had completed their notes, popping up to present their case. 

“Okay, we got this! We have a compilation of who could be your true love,” Anna announced, holding up a napkin with various notes scribbled across it. 

“Or at least your next one nighter,” Ruby interjected. 

“Ruby!” Belle called out, her cheeks pinking in embarrassment.

The taller brunette simply shrugged. “Like I said, everyone has needs.”

Anna cleared her throat to get their attention, holding up the bar napkin to display it to Belle, watching her as she leaned against the pool table. 

“Number one on the list, Dr. Archie Hopper. He’s mild mannered, very sweet, loves dogs and has a successful career.” Anna offered up their first choice, listing their reasoning. 

“Number two,” Ruby pitched in. “Will Scarlet. He’s hot, not to mention hot, oh and he’s also hot if you didn’t know… Oh, and he has an English accent,” she pointed out, waggling her eyebrows. 

“And number three,” Anna continued, “August Booth. Everyone finds him handsome, he is a writer, and he has always been chivalrous.” 

Belle humored her friends as she heard them out, spinning the pool cue between her hands as they finished. “Those are my options you two have found?

“Well, the top three at least... Jefferson came in fourth place, but he can be pretty eccentric,” Ruby noted. 

Anna giggled in excitement. “So, what do you think?”

“I think Dr. Hopper is very nice, but I can’t say he’s my type. Will is still in love with his ex and everyone knows he’s completely heartbroken,” Belle answered, taking a moment to think. “As far as August is concerned, I don’t know him well enough, but he seems to be taken by his typewriter.”

“What about Jefferson?” Anna offered up, reaching for success. 

“That would just be awkward. I’m friends with both Jefferson and his daughter, that would change our dynamic a lot.”

Ruby smiled behind her glass as she took a drink. “I wouldn’t throw that out the window. Have you seen a shirtless Jefferson? It could be a good change in dynamic.” She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. 

Belle shook her head, reaching back to tuck her hair behind her ear. “I don't even want to know where you saw that.” 

“Fair enough.” Ruby laughed, grabbing a spare pool cue from the rack to line up the first shot. 

“Ooh, the loser buys the next round!” Anna announced, following over to watch the match. 

xxxxx

A fair few drinks and a couple games of pool later, the girls were certainly enjoying their night. 

On the other side of the bar, other town residents were trying their best to enjoy their night, as well. 

Marcus had closed the shop for the night and taken care of errands while Jefferson had a father daughter night at home. Rather than interrupt their time, he had decided to have a drink at the bar to relax, thinking that the night cap might provide a calmer night than he had previous. 

Drinking was something he was always careful about. In his previous line of work, he had seen people turn to it as a crutch far too easily. It was a dark path to watch someone spiral out of control with it and he didn’t fancy finding himself in the same position. 

It was the first time he had come to the Rabbit Hole and he was thankful that the bartender had little interest in holding a conversation with the lone drinker. Rather, he seemed to keep himself busy with filling drink orders and cleaning his work space. 

No one enjoyed a nosy bartender. 

Rather, Marcus’ attention was focused on the same pair the bartender seemed to have a casual interest in. They had been at the opposite end of the counter before he came in and despite the music, the pool games, and the general chatter in the space - even with his hearing aid volume turned down - he was sure he could hear the two men from a mile away. 

Keith Nottingham slammed his glass back down against the bar top, tossing back the end of his rum and coke.

“You’re better off without that cheating bitch, at least now you’re free to get some real ass,” he pointed out, rubbing the stubble of his beard. He turned and tapped his glass twice on the bar for another round. 

Arthur grumbled under his breath as he complained about his ex-wife. She had barely sent him the divorce papers before she was already in another man’s bed.

He folded his arms and shook his head. “In this town? Knowing you, I’d be getting your sloppy seconds.” 

“Fine, then. You can sit here and sulk, and in the meantime, I’m going to find some better company for the night.” 

Keith grabbed up his fresh drink with a grin, watching as Belle leaned over the pool table to line up another shot in the game. He already knew whose company he wanted for the night. 

He got up, leaving Arthur to deal with his own problems. As he walked up behind the petite brunette, it seemed that her two friends had excused themselves to make a phone call outside.

Keith knew an opening when he had one. He leaned over her back while she was focused on lining up another shot in her pool game. 

“You’ll never make the pocket at this angle, babe. Let me show you a better one…” he whispered, running his fingers down her spine towards her backside. 

Belle gasped, jumping at the unexpected touch, the butt of her pool cue to smacking into Keith’s gut as she spun around. The unexpected jab to his gut forced him to let go of his grip on his glass as he clutched at his stomach, the drink flying forward as the liquid contents spilled down the front of Belle’s dress before the glass hit and shattered on the bar floor. 

“Keith, what the hell!” Belle exclaimed, taking in her soaked state.  

“Whoops, sorry babe,” he answered, brushing the incident off as he took in the view of Belle’s dress.

The top of her dress clung to her like a second skin, the light color fabric losing its opacity as it exposed the lines of the bra beneath. 

Keith grinned, his eyes traveling in a particular direction as he spoke again. “Why don’t you come back to my place and we can get you out of that wet dress?” 

From the counter, Arthur let out a wolf whistle at the sight. Sure he had his own problems to deal with, but he certainly wasn’t going to miss out on a free show when it was put on display so well.

Belle had opened her mouth to tell him off as the weight of a thick knit cardigan landed around her shoulders, large enough that it fell around her front to cover her wet bodice. 

“I don’t think that will be necessary.” An accented voice cut in as Marcus stepped in between them, forcing Keith to take a step back. “I’m quite sure she can take care of herself,” he commented. “Whether you are capable of taking care of yourself is another matter.” 

Before Keith had a chance to sputter anything back, Marcus had set his hand on Belle’s shoulder lightly as he led her away back to her table, leaving Keith to deal with the broken glass and the irritated bartender. 

“Are you alright, Miss French?” 

“Yes… Yes I am. Thank you,” she answered, gripping onto the sides of his cardigan as she held it around herself. 

“Think nothing of it,” Marcus answered. “If you like —” 

“Oh my god, Belle! What happened!” Ruby called out as she jogged back to their table. “Are you alright?”

“You’re soaked through and there isn’t even a fountain in here!” Anna added, grabbing up their note napkins from earlier as she started to pat her friend dry. 

Marcus smiled to himself as he slipped his hands into his pockets, taking the chance to excuse himself from the bar. He was right - Belle could take care of herself, and she certainly had enough additional help. 

Belle nodded. “Yes, I’m fine. I just got soaked from Keith’s drink when he—” 

“When he what? I can’t believe the nerve of him. I’ll… Wait, whose sweater is that?” Ruby questioned.

[thelittlehansy]

A chronology of all my different opinions of Prince Hans. ( 2013-2020)

Long version of a old post i already make. my different opinion about Mr.of the southern isles not sure how much thats actually interesting XD but it is truly CRAZY how many opinion i got about that character so i m gonna tried to give the most faithful inside look i have about Hans trought the years.😁

1-Neutrality ( 2013)

I was at first kind of neutral toward Hans. Like i was adoring already the love is an open door and the dynamic between Hans and Anna jinx jinx again it was my fav part 😂 but at the end i was more pleasantly suprise by the twist its was suprising and to me THE thing of the movie. the part exciting to watch again and know people reaction of it.. Like its was the beginning of the twist trend i was more pleasantly surprise that betrayed. I was finding Anna and kristoff really cute together and i remembered the comments "she kiss the others guy at the end its ruined the lesson of the movie" annoyed me a LOT 😂like i find that funny because now i understand more the critiscm of the end. Something that never change was my opinion of the punch at the end......*rolled my eyes* I never though it was something funny even if hans deserve it.

2- Hans is a loathsome character. ( around 2014-2017)

Frozen began to be one those movies with tangled and the princess and the frog that i watch several times because of how entertaining they were. So i begin To really associated Hans to a very messed up character cruel cold sadistic i was having that strong image of him during the betrayal scene. The emotionally abusive Hans to a poor princess . Really the worst part of what he did is how personal and mean he was To Anna. How he treat anna with so much cruelty.

I remember also didnt finding Hans handsome at all and didnt even understanding all the appeal around his design. ( now i have completly change my mind XD ) i think thats hans actions makes him even more ugly to me at that period. That period last a long time because that opinion was at a period i was not at all interest that much of frozen and that period last a long time. So yeah didnt was hating him but highly disliking him.

3- Hans : the disney villain ! ( around 2017)

That we entered in a dark period when i began interest in one thing : writing disney crossover fanfiction. When i treat Hans as every disney classical villain. 😂Every trait à disney villain got hans was having it in my head. I want to cringe at myself at that period because when i was trying to wrote crossover fanfic Hans was someone indicredibly violent who loved blood. i was making him do stupid thing for the sake of doing stupid thing. He really was hate by everyone. He wanted to rules the world i was enjoying makes other character put him down like his brothers or other disney princess and prince😅. Like in my head Hans was a disney villain so there was no way he was being friend with prince and princess But really he was always doing dumb thing and all the princes were hating on him because this is "Hans" you know😂. I took Hans as excuse to have some baddies in the fanfic i was imagining so what about the plot that hans team up with jafar in order To rules over the southern isles 😂 seriously remind myself of these hans period makes me want to hit my head against a wall. Because its obvious now that i was just not interest in the character , i put 0 thinking in his character and was making him do dumb very very dumb things for the sake of making shine the heroes of my fanfic.

Now i beleive this is something we are a lot to do i can name once upon a time who makes hans do stupid thing in order for Anna and kristoff to shine and maleficent who put down every single character of sleeping beauty to makes shine Maleficent sorry Beneficent.

I think at that period i have also learn some stuff about a frozen heart like lars the name of a brothers that is Nice to Hans and was making hans being an asshole to him and lars hating him After arendelle 😄

4- The best villain EVER OK !!!!! (2017-2018)

I think at the level I was reading more frozen fanfic because i got extremely interest in him at the difference of before who really i didnt paid attention to his character at all he was only a very very random disney villain. finally but most importantly i Feel in love with the idea of an evil prince. So thats when become my period Hans is the most evil disney villain he is amazing the twist is AWESOME OK !!!!!! Dont critized it ok !!! Thats perfect its makes totally sense 😂

The smile under the boat ? Thats a smirk what are you talking about.😄

Sociopath ? He is one. Look i know nothing about anti social personality disorder i put 0 observation in Hans actual personality BUT he was abused by his brothers. See thats not how sociopath are made ? Doesnt people who are abused turn into monster ??? ( god what an awful reasoning i hate now people who say he was abused so thats make sense he is evil) see jennifer lee said he is one ! *disappoint face while reading several people making good arguement as why he is not*

The hints ? I rewatch frozen especially for Hans and notice his face and all the hints were blowing my mind. But most importantly the one at that ice castle and his look at the chandelier to killed elsa. I swear i have read a comment saying the creators confirmed it was not part of the script and an error because i rememeber be very very upset and wanting this hint to be true 😅

Also my worst enemy at that period : the troll theory because it was logical....And the redemption fans wanted.😅 i was like

He is EVIL let him stay EVIL !!!!!!

Now i think i did like Anna 🙄😂 she feel in love with idea of love instead of Hans and me i Feel in love with the idea of an evil prince that took Hans for the character he is..😄

5 : Hans : Anna'ex fiance ( 2018)

The thing with disney princess villain is that most of the times the princess and the prince relationship are at the heart of the movie. So when frozen come out its was cool because elsa and Anna sisters relationship was at the heart of the movie. But in the end we saw more Anna with kristoff that with Elsa so i kind of associated personally frozen with anna and kristoff relationship. So that period where i start to stop having this very rigid point of view and allowed myself getting interest into something i was defitntly not with the other disney princess movies. The relationship between the princess and the villain who here was her ex fiance. So hans Begin in my mind much more Anna ex fiance that a classical disney villains and thats around here i start to truly ship them because i was really exploring Hans relationship with anna and the funny comical post canon relationship between them they could have. like them keep getting inviting at Ball arguing making their own propaganda on their side making love is an open door reference so i discovered there that Hans to me could have a pretty funny amazing dynamic with Anna that i never thought in the past. But it was more at that period start to find Hans and anna relationship interesting that shipping them.

6- team Jacob team peeta sorry team Hans or team kristoff. ( 2018)

My triangle love drama period basically. I began to considerably ship way more hansanna. Of course in post canon redemption story or AU and i think i have at that period read literraly all the hansanna fanfic ever. anna in poly relationship was my otp 😂 began a level where i start to extremely not ship kristanna not ship hansanna but ship them at the same time. 😂

and really shipping kristanna and hansanna alone had not the same charm as shipping them together.

So i began to see Hans more from a shipping point of view that for his own character. even when i watched frozen the very first times i was liking Anna subplot romantic arc with kristoff and Hans. And it was bringing me good old feeling of my teen and pre Teen years when i was addict to the hunger games and twilight and basically love triangle😂. Something there isnt technically in frozen but there are still Anna and two suitors with Hans and kristoff.

7- the grey characters with an interesting family. ( 2018)

Reading more fanfic i start to view him more as a grey characters and start to be interest in hans family. Yeah before i was all the time imagining hans alone didnt really take into consideration the little very little tiny detail that hans is a prince has a kingdom and a pretty big family. I had two strong headcanon about his family his brothers were jerks but just jerks and most of them were nice oh and their dad was dead i was loving the idea of hans older brother be the king. The king and the queen were character that i overlook that i was not interest but i was way more interest in hans brothers. So i continue my view on grey Hans and that relationship with anna i was so interest while being more and more interest in Hans family. So my world of headcanon crush when i discovered more stuff about that book a frozen heart publish by disney. And well in that book most of Hans brothers were really more than jerks but really horrible so first headcanon destroyed but i tried to keep the name Caleb but imagine the character with the personality i like. The king was alive....ok second headcanon destroyed 😅 ok gonna deal with that and like the idea of the king being nice. ( didnt knew how mess up he actually was)

8- the king of the southern isles : view Hans from the point of view of his relationship with his father.( 2019-2020)

The step : i finally command a frozen heart i spoiled myself while reading tv tropes😂😂 ( around that time i created myself a tumblr account) and read that book : basically i got incredibly more interest in : Hans psychology , the king of the southern isles hans relationship with his dad.something that i never through about in the past. But reading tv tropes makes me a LOT interest in the king of the southern isles and Hans relationship with him. really ironic taking my old headcanon into consideration really that book how it developp hans psychology really makes me view him A LOT different. We learn Hans hates violence is a pacifist never do evil thing in his life safe for what he did during those 3 years for his dad but he hates every bit of it. So i really started to view Hans dependant under the influence of his father and thinking that what is evil with Hans is more that toxic relationship with his father than Hans himself. Every bad thing he did this is because of his father corrosive influence. Thats also a period when i start to really saw him from a psychologist point of view his daddy issues his trauma. So yeah A Frozen Heart make me really see Hans in a whole new light

9- Hans the victim and the not so great villain (2020)

So now i think we move to my recent opinion well i m sorry but i cant ignore stuff publish my disney not a matter of liking a frozen heart or not To me stuff publish by disney are canon until Proven not and also i read that a group was form when frozen began something huge to keep everything same in the franchise. So after reading and analyzing a frozen heart thinking...thinking way too much about it i start to think even more about Hans😂. And here we got a character with a very big Ndad hans being his scapegoat who was all his life emotionally, verbally , physically , mentally abused since he is little victim of narcissist abuse. All the times reject , humiliated, bully and thats very hard to ignore all of That because from jeenifer lee word of Hans childhood to that recent comic disney publish with little Hans. They really go for : hans has a very messed up life. I m sorry but at this point thats canon. And the problem i have is that all of That that is defintly not a tragic backstory the character is still very much being currently mistress , abused and neglect by his family. He is still living that life as a kid as a teen as a young adult as an adult And nope whatever how much we like elsa and anna and it was wrong what hans do. He do not deserve to be punished by his abusers. And his abusers do not deserve to punish him. So when you have disney giving all that information about him showing him being a interesting character complex that has never do anything evil on his own wish except in frozen. But most importantly giving him such an Horrible life something that was never do for the others disney villain this is really hard to consider Hans a true disney villain. And yeah he is the villain of Anna and elsa story but very much the victim from the point of view of his family. So thats all of this that makes hans a character that truly break my heart for what he has endure and is still enduring in his life. So my current vision of Hans is victim Hans of course i repeat not toward elsa and Anna you know the kind of stuff some people would twist about what i say but a victim because Hans got very very bigger villain in his life on the contrary of the others disney villains. What is even more sad is that the two people that cares for him lars and his mom dont even stand up for him in public. So thats really complicated....even ship i slighty change my mind i ship even more hansanna , i ship kristanna and Anna in a poly relationship is still my otp🤣🤣 but...getting a tumblr account last summer and reading the whole blog fnafiction.net and archive of our own had be associated kristanna with not very good thing but i still like the ship. What change a lot is my view on him as villain now i agree that the twist sucks 😅it wasnt done very well and the hints...after reading some stuff now i belive most of them are creation of the fans. So thats a whole different point of view. 😂😂and nah hans has a lot of people above him in the hierarchy , he was not the big obstacle of the movie and i found out that Hans lying to anna was not even a thing at all during love is an open door while paying attention at several stuff on the franchise ( i make several post about it on my blog) the hints when hans look at the chandelier dont even exist in the scenario i chekced it. Hans was a bad guy to ony the main characters elsa and anna at the difference of the others disney villains. So all of those stuff compare to disney villains make hans to me A weak villain and more fitting in the disney princes line up as he is too me interesting and complex but not at the level of evil queen tremaine frollo scar shang yu jafar ursula maleficent dr facilier.

So yeah thats makes a 180 degree change just like him in the movie 😄 i dont know maybe my mind is gonna change again ?

it really never happen to me with any other disney character before To change so much my mind.

[kristannafever]

Second Chances - 9

Kristanna Modern AU Rated: Explicit WC: 2021

Chapter Index

----------------

“This is happening!” Anna squealed. 

Kristoff laughed.  “It is!”

“I can’t wait,” she said, hugging him around the neck and pulling him in for a kiss.

He basked in the warmth of her kiss and the glow of her happiness.  It had only taken about two weeks for them to plan the entire wedding, and in one short month, they were going to be wed.

“And I’m glad that works for our sisters to take time off to fly home,” she said, pulling out of his embrace and going back to her laptop where she had just finished booking the venue. 

Kristoff was too.  It was a worry when they brought it up with their sisters that they would find work too demanding for the short time frame, but as luck would have it, they were both able to make the trip and take an extra couple of days beforehand to help them prepare. 

-----

They picked a Ranchers Hall in a small rural town about a half hour outside of the city.   It was perfect for Anna’s vision of a country winter wedding.  And while the place was rather small, it didn’t matter since the only people they were inviting were family and only the closest of friends.  All in all, about forty guests.

His sister and Anna’s sister were going to serve as the best person and maid of honor, and it was decided by Kristoff (and greatly appreciated by Anna) that his parents were going to walk with both him and then Anna down the aisle.  As soon as the ceremony was complete, they were going to do some family photos outside while the venue changed the rows of chairs out for tables and started the bar and serving guests.

The flowers Anna chose were white roses because they symbolized the purity of their love and the new beginnings they were having at life with each other. 

The meal they decided on was either prime rib or salmon as per the guest’s choice, and the caterer they had booked also offered appetizers for the cocktail hour and late-night pizza and popcorn for inebriated party goers.  Kristoff thought it would be a good idea to personally pay for the pre-dinner drinks and then charge a toonie bar afterward and to offer pre-paid cab vouchers to anyone who didn’t want to stay in the town’s small hotel so there was no worry of anyone drinking and driving.

Anna had argued briefly with him about the cost of the wedding as he was handling it all, which turned into a rather deep conversation about how he’d lived with his ex.  He told Anna the sad truth that they never really did anything.  They never even went on a vacation together.  Not that he didn’t want to.  It was all his ex.  She had a group of friends from high school she was still extremely close with, and her vacation time was spent solely with them.  At the beginning he didn’t mind too much, thinking it would be nice to have those quiet weeks here and there to himself, then time went on and when he’d brought up her using her time to go somewhere with him, her reaction had been reluctance and confusion; since they lived together already, why would she give up these trips with her friends to spent more time with him.   So she kept taking vacations with her group and Kristoff saved a ton of money over the years for not going anywhere. 

Upon hearing about this, Anna’s face went deep scarlet and she sat there with her teeth clenched frowning at him.

“You know,” she started, “I have a lot of things in my mind that I could say about that, that I want to say about that, then I think of where we are now, how I don’t want to spend another second of my life without you by my side, and I realize that it doesn’t really matter, does it?”

Kristoff shook his head.  “Nope.”

Anna sighed, letting go of her anger.  “I will never not appreciate the second chance at love that I got to have with you, Kristoff.  You are my soulmate and I love you more than anything.”

“I love you too.”  He leaned in and kissed her, then pulled his head back and arched an eyebrow.  “That got you kinda mad eh?”

She nodded.  “A little, I guess.  I just don’t like hearing about you getting mistreated.”

“Well, same here, but you know that.”  He smirked at her.  “Care to take out any pent-up aggression on me?”

Anna’s eyes lit up.  “What do you have in mind?”

He put his mouth close to her ear.  “Why don’t you fuck my brains out?”

Anna shuddered.  “How would I do that exactly?”

He shrugged.  “Use your imagination.  My body is your playground.”

She smiled at him wickedly.  “Damn right it is.”  Then she kissed him forcefully.

They began to undress each other when Anna interrupted told him she wanted to go to the bedroom.  Shedding the remainder of their clothes as they went down the hall, they arrived in their room fully naked and attached at the lips. 

Kristoff pressed her down onto the bed, crawled over her, and began kissing his way down her body.  She smiled.  She would definitely have her way with his body as she saw fit, but she was not about to deny the pleasure that his mouth gave her. 

She curled her fingers into his impossibly soft hair, moaning loudly as his tongue lashed out against her clit.  Her back arched as he worked his mouth, and while she was enjoying the hell out of it, she grew impatient to have him.

When she gently tugged his hair, he stopped and looked up at her.  “I need you now,” she whispered.

“How do you want me?” he asked, sitting up.

“On your back.”

Anna moved and he took her place, laying down in the middle of the mattress.  She crawled over him and took a moment to kiss him passionately before she started. 

Moving slowly, she slid down onto his cock with a passionate and somewhat desperate moan.  It amazed her how she seemed to forget in between the moments they were not making love how good it actually felt to have him inside of her.  There was nothing in the world she could compare it with. 

She moved against him, already so close from his mouth, it didn’t take long before Anna felt the pull towards letting go.  Only, this time, she stopped, and her arousal pulsed briefly before quieting down. 

“Fuck, you have no idea how much that makes me crazy,” Kristoff muttered as he caressed her hips.   

She looked down at his face, careful not to move her hips just yet.  “Yeah?”

He nodded slowly.  “It’s…” He let out a long breath.  “It just feels incredible.  Do it again.”

Anna gave him a wicked smile.  “You read my mind.”

She began to move herself against him, slowly at first, then picking up her pace a bit until that feeling came back.  She stopped again, just one more movement away from going too far, and her center quivered against his cock.

“Fuck…” he said slowly. 

Anna held stark still.  If she moved right then, she was going to come and she didn’t want to just yet.  She waited until her arousal died down, then finally relaxed her body against him. 

“I have to be honest, Anna,” Kristoff said, his hands massaging her thighs, “I don’t think I will be able to last you doing that again.”

She smiled at him.  “Does you in that much, huh?”

“You have no idea,” he mumbled, curling his hands around her back and pulling her down for a kiss. 

Anna gave in to his lips, kissing him back and starting to move herself against him.  She went slow this time, allowing herself to feel every second of her renewed growing arousal.  She pulled back from his lips and braced her hands on his chest as she got closer.  She had never felt such a deep need for an orgasm in all her life.

Kristoff’s grip was tightening on her hips and she knew he was going to come as soon as she did.  Anna found that edge again, only this time she did not deny herself.  She gasped as it got closer, and then a second later she was crying out with sweet relief.

Kristoff cried out softly with her, holding her firmly to him as they climaxed together.  It felt amazing to Anna to be able to ride out her orgasm with his cock pulsing powerfully within her.  It was basically mind-melting pleasure.  It was no wonder she was hooked on it like a drug.  A drug she was so thoroughly addicted to, that she knew they would have sex at least one more time before the end of the day. 

Or maybe two or three.  There seemed to be no way to satiate their hunger for one another.

~   ~   ~   ~   ~

Their wedding day was stunningly perfect.

Everything went according to plan and the only hiccup of the entire day was when Anna realized she accidently left her precious jewellery – the pieces she got back from her shitty ex – at home.  It was rectified shortly by Kristoff’s parents driving into the city to fetch them while the wedding party got ready.

What followed was flawless.

At the end of the night, with only a few guests left snacking on the pizza and the popcorn and talking in groups, Anna looked over at Kristoff, the happy and slightly drunk smile on his face, and felt her heart nearly explode with love. 

He was talking to Chester and his parents and laughing about something.  Anna could not take her eyes off of him; the most stunning man on the face of the planet in his pressed suit pants and white button down with the tie gone, top buttons undone, and his sleeves rolled up to his elbows.  His hair was mussed from dancing all night, his brown eyes shinning so brightly with life, his smirk of a smile on full display.  Truly, he was nothing but complete perfection in Anna’s eyes.  The sexiest man on the face of the planet.

He happened to glance her way, catching her staring at him, and he turned towards her and smiled.  They walked towards each other and straight into a tight embrace. 

“I can’t believe you are my wife,” he mused, kissing her neck. 

“God, I can’t believe you are my freaking husband!” Anna said back excitedly.  She pulled back to look at his face.  “And now we get to have a whole hell of a lot of fun making some children.”

“You bet your ass we do,” he breathed, and kissed her. 

-----

About an hour later, Kristoff was pushing himself into her. 

The foreplay was only a couple of sloppy drunk kisses before Anna was begging for him.  It didn’t matter to her, her only goal for the night was for him to come inside of her.  She’d had her IUD removed a couple of weeks ago and in the interim before the wedding, he’d worn protection.  Anna much preferred the feeling of his naked skin without the rubber barrier.    

“I can’t wait for tomorrow,” he said between kisses.  “I am so excited to take a real vacation.  With my wife!”

“Me too,” Anna said through a sigh.  “Oh, Kristoff, me too.”

He took the hint that she didn’t want to talk too much and pressed his pelvis flush with hers.  He knew exactly what he was doing, and even through all the drinks, Anna knew she was going to come and that he was holding out to join her. 

She let go of every thought besides the building feeling in her abdomen.  It grew until it reached the point where Anna’s mind went utterly blank, then she reached the edge and fell over it.  They moaned, holding each other through every strong contraction of their shared orgasm.

---

Previous Chapter

[swimmingnewsie]

Of Coffee and Cookies- Chapter 17

Link to AO3 

---

“Come on, slowpokes! We’re going to be late!”

Elsa couldn’t help but laugh as her little sister rushed ahead, running and tumbling through the streets. Though admittedly it still made Elsa nervous, parkour was an active part of Anna's life now- a part that made Anna happier than she had in months. The pure joy on Anna’s face as she swung around on dubiously strong light fixtures was worth the minor scrapes and bruises she helped fix up at the end of the day.

“Oh no you don’t!”

She shook her head as both Kristoff and Ryder ran ahead as well. They had gotten so competitive in the wake of Anna’s newfound strength, always wanting to race when given the opportunity. It left some sense of normalcy that had been gone for the longest while. But unlike her companions, she felt no reason to rush. Softball had nine innings after all; it was okay to take her time.The warm spring sun felt perfect on her face, a light breeze bringing her peace and clarity of mind.

As April turned to May, the weather wasn’t the only thing that was improving. After her night in the emergency room, things changed quickly for Elsa. Berkeley Behavioral Health had ordered a genetic test for her, one that tested the compatibility of antidepressants with her body. And after years of the wrong medication, Elsa finally had something that worked. Between that and exercise and the increased sessions with her therapist, the highs felt good again and the lows weren’t as scary. It was incredible what just a few small changes made.

She felt better than she had in years.

She could work again. Her responsibilities were still stressful; her students still emailed her at two in the morning over their exam results or advice for their papers; her dissertation was still a mess. But the mess was manageable now. Nights that might have otherwise been lost to crying and sleeplessness had turned into only an hour or two of distress. The chains on her mind had loosened, not broken, but there was space to breathe again. Space for fun. Space for life. And to her greatest joy, space for Honeymaren, who had been by her side the whole time, even when things were tiring or frustrating or upsetting.

Elsa could finally repay her for the previous months in gentle kisses and sweet love. She could be there for all the little moments they had missed before: rubbing soft circles in her back as she lamented the awful PTA meetings she was forced to attend; holding her as she told her about the awful phones calls she had to make that day; smiling as her love got excited over a lacrosse match. Or in this moment, getting to watch the middle school softball team she had heard so much about at night.

The sound of a ball clinking against a bat drew her attention from her thoughts. The faint sound of cheering followed, unconsciously quickening Elsa’s steps towards the small field.

The stands were relatively empty, not that Elsa truly expected much different. It was a sixth grade softball game in the middle of Thursday afternoon; parents were the target demographic. But even for the light crowd, the kids in the dugout certainly filled the field with energy and excitement.

Well at least the kids on the opposite team. Maren’s girls for the most part, bless their hearts, were terrified of the ball. And being a home game, it would take a while to get past the top of the inning.

“Come on, Janie! You can do it! Strike them out!” Maren cheered enthusiastically from the side. Elsa couldn’t help but blush; Maren looked good in her coaching uniform, highlighting more than her authoritative attitude. She couldn’t help but stare at her-

“Quit gawking at your girlfriend! There’s baseball happening here!” Anna shouted from above her.

Elsa laughed, racing up the bleachers to her sister. “You stinker!” she teased, tussling her sister’s hair. “I’ll get you back for that.”

Anna laughed in return. "I'm not the one eye-fucking my girlfriend at a children's sporting event."

"Anna, language!" she jabbed before any of the parents could do the same.

Anna rolled her eyes before looking at Kristoff and Ryder. "Am I wrong?"

Ryder shook his head laughing. "Sorry, sis. I'm asexual as they come and even I can tell that's what you were thinking."

"You've never been exactly subtle, Els," Kristoff chuckled, only causing Elsa to blush more heavily.

Elsa glared at him. It was good natured, but she would kill for the teasing to end."Hush up and watch the game."

"As you wish, your majesty."

---

"Eye on the ball doesn't mean it's gonna hit you! You can do it, Megs!" Ryder shouted from the stands.

Even he had to admit, this year's team wasn't the easiest to cheer for. The girls were quite timid and afraid, especially of the spherical object that ran the game. But, dutiful brother and occasional waterboy, he would cheer them on day in and day out. Even if they hadn't scored in four games.

"I'm sorry, Coach's Brother!" A dejected preteen shouted back after striking out.

"It's okay, kid! You'll get it next time!"

Ryder sat back down, resting between two bleachers. The innings were moving slowly, but at least they were moving. He looked to the field changing and then to his friends around him. Maren was high-fiving her students, making any attempt to bring their spirits up. Elsa on the other hand was still eyeing his sister, with Anna not so slyly taking embarrassing pictures. And then there was Kris.

Kris was engrossed in something, flustered by something on his phone. It was cute, the way that he bit his lip and scrunched his brow. "You know the baseball's up here," he teased, poking his ex-boyfriend on the shoulder.

“Sorry,” Kris sighed, putting his phone down. “Guess I’m a bit distracted is all.”

Ryder huffed, looking back at their friends. “Seems you aren’t the only one. But I think I’m better to help you than them, don’t you think?”

“Maybe.” He stretched his back, smiling at the satisfying crack. “Just looking at jobs, but I- I feel conflicted.”

“What over, find something better than baristaing?” Ryder teased lightly. “You’ve been applying for weeks, did you get a hit somewhere?”

“Sort of.” Kris ran a hand through his hair, his eyes looking around. “They’re offering me a promotion at Mermaid’s. They want me to be the assistant store manager. They want to train me to run the whole damn thing.”

Ryder couldn’t help but smile. The promotion would mean the world to Kris. He would be able to fix up his car properly and finally have a regular schedule and probably so many other things. “That’s amazing, dude! That’s so exciting! Why are you excited?”

“I- I don’t know,” he said, nervously picking at some grout in the bleacher. “I would have to take some more classes and certification. More food safety and even some management and marketing classes at the community college. But- I don’t know. Weeks ago I was so desperate to get out of there and now they’re offering this position and it feels almost like a betrayal to me? I don’t know it’s stupid,” he shrugged.

“It’s not stupid, man. It’s a big decision. And it’s not one you have to make right now.” He gave Kris a pat on the back, turning to get up. “You know what will make this better?”

“Yeah, and what’s that?” he asked, with that dumb little teasing sound to his voice.

“Nachos,” he said point blank. “I’ll be right back.”

He headed straight down to the small concession stand. He tried to be as fast as possible, but perhaps he was a little too fast when-

“Shit, not again! I’m so so sorry. Are you okay?” A young woman with bright multicolored hair ran into him, sending his food falling. “Oh no, I’m so sorry. Let me get you a new one? Please?”

“Um, I’m okay. Are you okay?” he asked, brushing the last of his chips off of his shirt, a bit baffled by what happened. “You don’t have to, it’s not a big deal.” If he was being perfectly honest, he wasn’t sure who had run into who.

“No, no please I insist,” she said, helping to brush off a few crumbs. “I’m Gale,”

“Ryder,” he said, starting back to the stand. He was finally able to get a good look at her- no them. He noticed a pronoun button, pinned proudly on a t-shirt for the middle school. “One of your kids go here? I’ve been around for a while, but I can’t say I recognize you.”

“My nephew,” they said before turning and ordering. “I think he has a crush on one of the girls on the team. He certainly has a sudden interest in baseball, that’s for sure. But who am I to object? I’ve always wanted to share it with him. Glad I finally can.”

Ryder smiled. “That’s sweet. Some of my favorite memories were of my dad taking me and my little sister out to play. Definitely something worth passing-”

“Gale!”

Anna was shouting up from the bleachers. How the hell did Anna know them?

“Hey! How’s my favorite barista?” they laughed as Anna started to come down. “I was just going to text you! What are you doing tomorrow night?”

“I get off at 10:30. Pre-closer, so hopefully I’ll be out on time. What’s up?” she said, dusting herself off. “Ryder, this is my friend Gale. I met them at my parkour class.”

Ryder nodded, grabbing the food that was set out. “So this is that Gale? Nice to finally meet you.”

Gale blushed. “Talking about me?” they teased. “Hopefully good things.”

“All good things,” Anna said rolling her eyes. “Like how badass you are, how you always manage to beat me in a race,all sorts of good things.”

They laughed. “Well I’m flattered. Well I was going to text you and ask if you would want to come out with me to Oaken’s tomorrow night? They’re doing a fundraiser for some high school’s GSA. Karaoke and drink profit goes to the school. What do you say?”

“How did a high school manage to run a fundraiser through a gay bar?” she asked with a small laugh. Ryder nodded; he was thinking the same thing.

“I think the owner’s kid goes there,” they shrugged. “Nevermind that, what do you think?”

Anna pondered it for a second. “What do you think, Ryder?”

HIs eyes widened. Was she trying to get them together? What was her goal here? “I mean it sounds like fun. You should go.”

“Think I would be fine bringing some others?” she asked.

Gale nodded enthusiastically. “More the merrier. It’s for a good cause.”

“Perfect! Ryder, you tell Kris and I’ll tell Elsa?” She pressed a quick kiss to his cheek before running off. “This’ll be fantastic.”

Ryder stood in shock for a second. “Um, sorry about that. Anna has a bit of a habit of-”

“Meddling?” they laughed. “I know. She kept trying to set me up on dates until I told her I was aroace.”

He didn’t think his eyes could get any wider. That’s why Anna was asking what he thought. “I- I’ve never- I’ve never,”

They tossed some of their hair back. “It’s okay. A lot of people don’t understand. Don’t worry.:

“No, no,” he said, putting a hand out as if to catch himself from stumbling over his words. “It’s just- I just realized it myself a couple of months ago. I haven’t met someone- not in real life at least- someone like me.”

Gale smiled. “Well Ryder, I will happily be your first triple-A friend: asexual, aromantic, agender.”

Ryder smiled back at them. “Thanks.”

“Come on, we’ve got some softball to watch.”

---

“Elsa, come on. You are not going to a gay bar in your professor clothes.”

Elsa tilted her head at Honeymaren. “What do you mean? I look good.”

“You look professional,” Maren said, wrapping her arms around her waist. She leaned her head into the crook of Elsa’s neck. “Besides, how am I going to dance with you if you wear that stiff shirt?”

Elsa laughed a little bit as Maren nibbled at her ear with a kiss. “You seem to be doing just fine right now.”

“Mmmmm,” she moaned softly. “Perhaps, but you’ll get hot so quick in that.”

“Oh, you’re worried about me being hot?” Elsa teased, reaching back to touch Maren’s hips. “Then what do you think I should wear, Oh Great Firemistress?”

“You are such a dork,” she said, sneaking one last kiss. Maren searched through her girlfriend’s closet, working past her usual work clothes. “What about this? I’ve never seen you wear it?”

“Never the occasion. A navy sundress isn’t exactly lab attire?”

“Hmmm, well good thing we aren’t going to the lab,” Maren smiled mischievously. “For me?”

“Well,” Elsa smiled, tapping on her chin. “Only if you help me take this off?” she teased.

“Oh, that I can absolutely do.”

---

Kristoff paced nervously in the living room. He hadn’t been out in a while, much less going out with his ex-boyfriend and their group of friends. But this would be fun right?

“How long does it take to get dressed to go out? Elsa is a stickler for time,” Anna sighed sitting down on the ground, her back against the couch.

“Well I don’t know if you noticed, but my sister is also in there with your sister. We could be waiting a while,” Ryder teased, handing her a controller. “Might as well play.”

“Uck-” Anna said, taking the offered controller. “Don’t make me think about the fact our sisters might be boning while we’re home.”

“Hey, I don’t like it either! Why do you think I put on Mario Kart?”

Kristoff smiled. Even after all this time, Ryder made his heart flutter. He shook his head and pushed it aside. He couldn’t act on it. It wasn’t right. “You know we could just go bug them to hurry up?”

“And risk burning my eyes out? Fat chance,” he laughed. “You want in next round, Kris?”

“Sure, I’ll play winner.”

Maybe going out wouldn’t be so bad. He could let loose of it all, be whoever he wanted for a night. It would be good. It had to be.

---

Anna didn’t know what to expect when they arrived, but it certainly wasn’t the dance club they arrived at. She hadn’t heard much about it other than seeing it on the news when it first opened, but Anna hadn’t been much for clubbing when she had first come to the city. It was everything the old Anna would have loved: loud music, a large dance floor, and plenty of people.

She fiddled nervously with the bands on her wrist. She had to admit, the club was pretty clever. There were a set of bands for the gender you identified as and a second set for what you were looking for. It had always been a passive thing, something she and Elsa had talked about, but she never brought it out in public. She had been too vulnerable after Hans to try and deal with it. But wearing the bisexual bracelet made it real, powerful. She could be her true self with no limits.

The music blared an old pop song she couldn’t but dance to. She smiled, letting herself move freely towards the bar where Kristoff was sitting alone. “What are you doing here by yourself?” she asked with a little more gusto than normal. “You’re at a dance club, and you aren’t dancing!”

“I don’t have that kinda rhythm,” he laughed, sipping on his whiskey. “Go, I’ll be out in a minute.”

“Now,” she laughed, a bit giddy. “Come on, the song is called “Shut Up and Dance” not “Sit Down and Drink.””

Kristoff shook his head, downing the last of his drink. “You’re drunk.”

“Maybe...” she slurred. Her mind did feel a bit foggy, but it was a good fog. A happy fog. A fog she wanted to share with Kristoff. “Come on, please?”

Much to her delight, he joined her in dancing. Neither were particularly good, but they didn’t have to be. She danced against him, her back to his chest and breathing in his scent. Normally the musk of sweat and alcohol would have turned her away, but she found herself wanting to draw closer.

“Having fun?” he asked as her movements slowed. Her limbs were tired, and she just wanted to hold onto his warm embrace.

“The best,” she said, breathless. “The best because you’re here and it’s fun and it’s really really nice.”

She felt his chest shudder, but decided to ignore it. “Best because I’m here?”

“Mhm,” she nodded. “I know you’re sad about Ryder still, but you came and are having fun.” Her eyes opened wildly, gaze unfocused. “You are having fun aren’t you? I’m sorry. I’m so awkward. I’ll shut up and-”

“No, no,” he gave a small laugh that made her whole chest feel like it was about ready to burst. “Just not what I thought you would say.”

Her body relaxed again against him. “I’m glad you’re having fun,” she said, her eyes getting tired.

“You wanna sit down for a bit? Have some water?” He was holding onto her hand, leading her off the floor. She nodded slowly, letting him lead her to a chair. “There we go. I’ll be right back.”

“Thanks, Kris. Love you.”

She didn’t watch as he walked away, didn’t notice or care how he reacted. She was happy and warm and a little drunk. Everything else could be taken care of in the morning. But for now, she would live in this one perfect moment.

[astaralys]

Prompt List: (honestly, practically all of them are gold, so it was really hard to pick just one but I'll go with) Random #24

Random prompt #24: Did You Just Hiss At Me?

> Still alive, Feisty Pants?

> Two words: CHOCOLATE. FOUNTAIN.

> More than alive then :)

Anna grins around the chocolate strawberry she’s just popped into her mouth. She likes that Kristoff uses commas and capital letters and emojis. She likes that he’s probably texting her while walking home from work. She especially likes that he doesn’t seem to understand how she could possibly be having a good time, but is nonetheless happy that she is.

She likes this charity ball a lot more than she thought she would, too. There’s a part of her that misses these chances to get in a nice dress and have a night of fun for a good cause. There’s a part of her that misses being seen like this. And every part of her misses her parents.

But there’s also a part of her that keeps scanning the room and unclenching each time she catches sight of Elsa. Her sister keeps shooting her are you okay looks even though she’s the one getting swarmed by people and reporters while Anna takes up permanent residence by the dessert table.

She’ll just get a few more nibbles. Then she’ll go over and rescue her sister. She’ll rescue her sister with nibbles. Great plan.

Someone sidles up to her just as she stuffs two marshmallows into her mouth. “Would you like a napkin, miss?”

Anna feels like a hamster as her head jerks up. “Oh no, is there something on my fa—” The rest of the word is mangled by an undignified sound of dismay.

Hans Westergaard blinks, and then arches a stupidly perfect eyebrow. “Did you just hiss at me?”

It’s a struggle not to choke. “What are you doing here?”

“Why, I’m offering the ungrateful lady a napkin. And yes, there is something on your face. Would you like me to—”

“No, thank you.” She snatches the napkin.

Hans watches with a slight smirk. He looks like a fairy-tale prince with his slicked-back hair and that nicely-tailored suit… wait a minute.

“Oh dear lord,” Anna mutters.

It’s the same damn suit he was wearing the night they met. The night Anna had made the mistake of believing that she’d found an actual fairy-tale prince who actually loved her only to find out months later that he was actually in love with her inheritance.

“I’m surprised to see you here, Anna,” Hans is saying blithely. A passing couple catches his eye and he smiles charmingly, raising his glass to them. “Last I heard, you were focusing on your studies. Oh, but of course—you must be accompanying your sister. She’s the one who actually knows what she’s doing. I never got to properly introduce myself while we were together. I should go over and rescue her from the mayor. Maybe she’d be more grateful… why are you smiling like that?”

“Nothing,” Anna chirps. “Hi, sis.”

The colour leeches from Hans’s face as he whirls around.

Elsa is the picture of sophisticated grace in her lavender gown, hands clasped patiently in front of her. “I’m sorry; I didn’t want to interrupt. Might I borrow my sister?”

Anna shoots Hans a smug smile as she skips around him.

“You have chocolate on your face,” Elsa chides, setting down her untouched champagne flute as she takes the crumpled napkin and dabs at Anna’s cheek.

Hans is left gawking for a moment. Then he recovers. “Hello, Elsa.”

“Hans,” Elsa replies, nodding back politely. “It’s good to finally meet you. I’m sorry I missed the wedding.”

“Wait, what?” Anna wonders if Elsa actually has been drinking too much—she knows that Anna mailed Hans’s ring back in a jack-in-the-box booby-trapped with chilli powder, right? She was the one who’d suggested the chilli powder in the first place!

Then Elsa adds, “Please give Ursula my regards.”

Hans’s expression puckers as if Elsa has emptied her glass over his head. His ears go red as his wine, and he mutters something before spinning on his heels and disappearing back into the crowd.

Anna immediately whirls on Elsa. “Um?”

“Yes?”

“Wedding? Ursula? What?”

Turning to the dessert table, Elsa picks up a skewer and starts sliding on marshmallows at an agonisingly tranquil pace. “It’s not public knowledge, but it seems your ex-fiancé tried to become ‘close friends’ with another heiress. Except she was not an heiress.”

“I’m so confused. He didn’t know who she was?”

“I believe he wasn’t entirely… cognizant.”

“Elsaaaaa.”

Her sister’s eyes twinkle as she dips the skewer into the chocolate fountain. “They were in Vegas, Anna.”

“Oh. Oh. Oh my god. Are you saying—did they—”

“I’m sure he will find a way out of it. He is a lawyer, after all.”

“Still!” Anna howls, wiping tears from her eyes. “How did you know?”

“Why do you think I know?”

“Aww.” Anna drops her head on Elsa’s shoulder. “Love you, sis.”

“I love you, too.” Elsa deftly moves her skewer away just as Anna tries to take a bite. “But not enough to share.”

“Oh, come on! Just one bite, you stinker!”

Kristoff was right: she’s more than alive.

—

Thank you for the prompt! This one ran away from me 😅

Here’s the prompts list if anyone wants to request more modern AU stuff!

[is0gild]

Ice Cream and Fire Oven Pizza - Chapter 6

Pairing: Elsa x Lea/Axel || Side Pairing: Riku x OC

Summary: Modern AU. She's an introvert ball of nerves who works at Ice Palace, a mall food court ice cream shop. He's the outgoing, sassy goofball who works at the Pizza Planet across the way. Hilarity, snark, and fluffy romcom hijinks ensue.

Word Count: 4,673

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER || NEXT CHAPTER

Credit for super friggin’ cute and super friggin’ amazing cover art goes to the super friggin’ talented ky-jane here on tumblr!

“Oh jeez, seriously?” Rayne snerked, a tiny plastic taste spoon hanging out of one corner of her mouth. “C’mon Elsa, they were just man boobs!”

Feeling a faint warmth creep up into my face, I huffed and turned my head to one side. “You don’t know, you weren’t there!”

“Psssh,” her eyes rolled, “I doubt they’re as mind blowing as you’re making them out to be.”

I twitched, gaze darting to the left. “I never exactly said the words mind blowing...”

Never said they weren't either.

...shush, brain.

She removed the tiny pink spoon from between her teeth to twirl it in the air as she singsonged, “The way you’re overreacting, you may as well have.”

Blushing intensifies.

“I’m not overreacting, I… I’m REacting! In… in just the exact right, perfect amount!” I stammered out, lightly stamping my foot down.  “I mean, one second he’s just standing there, and the next? He takes his shirt off! Right in front of me! Who does that?!”

“Sure a lotta guys would love to,” she muttered, but I hardly heard her in my current state of mid-rant.

“I mean, the Pizza Planet back room was just a ten second walk away, he couldn’t wait that long? He had to do it right there, right that second? That’s it! That’s the only reason that I’m being all… this! It has nothing to do with the alleged mind blowing...ness of his, uh…his...” I floundered, gesturing wildly to my bosom, “... décolletage or the accompanying, er…” my hand now did a frantic circle around my abdomen, “...accoutrements! I mean, fine, okay, I’m sure as far as man boobs and such go, his are very, ah… very nice.  Adequate. Stately, even.” Dear god, somebody stop me. “...pleasantly symmetrical? Quite… satisfactory and well structured… s-some might even say-”

“You done?” she cut in, an eyebrow quirking.

I hid my face in my hands, mumbling, “Yes please.”

“Alright. Now girl, let me tell you, you haven’t seen mind blowing pectorals until you’ve seen Riku’s. I-” she stopped, snapping her fingers. Then she was digging her phone out of her back pocket, her thumb now rapidly swiping across the screen several times. “Hang on, I got pictures, I can show you. Ah-ha!” She grinned brightly, turning the phone screen towards me and thrusting it in my face.

“Gah!” I quickly looked away, raising a hand to block the image. “Why?! Just… why?!”

“What? I’m proud of my hubby’s man boobs and like showing them off!”

Thankfully, Kristoff chose that moment to join us, usual bored look in place as he stretched his arm across the counter, offering a dollop of ice cream on another small spoon to Rayne. “Here’s the taste of Daisy Sorbet you asked for, Ma’am,” he droned out.

Eyes lighting up, she tossed the first spoon, snatching the new one up and sticking it in her mouth. “Mmmmm, fantastic! Now, garçon, I’d like to sample the Honeybunny please!”

He huffed out a soft growl. “Ma’am, that’ll be the twentieth flavor you’ve tasted. Would you like to try, oh, say, I dunno… actually buying something?”

“Excuse me,” she sniffed, raising her nose up and placing a hand on her chest, fingers splayed, “but I am with child, sir. Picking the exact right flavor of ice cream that won’t upset my sweet lil jellybean is a delicate, delicate process.”

Kristoff groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. Then he fixed me with a dull stare. “Elsa, make your friend go shoo.”

I gave him a sympathetic smile, but just shook my head, “Sorry, not happening.” 

“Ha!” Rayne cried triumphantly. “Now be a good boy, run along and get me that Honeybunny! Chop chop! We don’t need you hanging around listening in on us discussing our important business!” 

His eyelids droop. “I believe I overheard the phrase ‘man boobs’ several times, how important can it really be?”

Rayne thrust out her lower lip, tapping an index finger to it. “Oh dear, there’s been such a long interruption now to my taste testing… I hope I don’t forget all the flavors I’ve already tried and have to start all over from the beginning again…”

“...one sample of the Honeybunny coming right up, Ma’am,” he said through grit teeth before turning and walking away.

I muffled a snort into my hand as I watched him go.

Sorry, Kristoff!

It was now the next day and I was back at work. I’d done my best the night before to clean up the devastating aftermath in the wake of Hurricane Ice Cream, but hadn’t quite been able to get it all - in particular, the splatters across the ceiling were just simply out of my reach. So I’d shown up early this morning to meet the opening crew on their way in and explain what had happened, offering what further assistance I could. Luckily, I hadn’t gotten in trouble. According to Kristoff, pushing the Anger Button was practically a right of passage for all new employees at this point. Pretty much everyone that’d ever worked here had done it at some time or another. I was just warned not to let it happen again.

Which, trust me, I wasn’t. I was going to be very mindful to not invade the Anger Button's personal space from now on.

I’d been exhausted when I’d got back home so late last night, so had gone straight to bed. Then this morning I’d rushed out practically at the crack of dawn, so I hadn’t gotten a chance to talk to Rayne. But she was making up for lost time by coming down now in the middle of the day to visit me at work and had just finished dragging my latest little misadventure out of me. She claimed she had a sixth sense about these things, that she’d known something was up and that I'd needed someone to talk to. 

And I'm sure all the free samples she was scoring right now had absolutely squat to do with it.

As soon as Kristoff was out of earshot once more, she hunched over the counter towards me and lowered her voice, “Alright but no, seriously, why was seeing Lea in all his shirtless glory such a big deal now, hm? You act like you've never seen a dude topless before.”

I flinched. “Well…”

Her brow furrowed. “…you have seen a dude topless, right? I mean, you were engaged for crying out loud!”

“Oh no, I have,” I nodded before pursing my lips to one side, averting my gaze. “But…”

“But?” she prompted. If she had a seat, she would quite literally be on the edge of it.

My hand reached up to toy with my braid. Nope, still a ponytail. Sighing, I said, “It was only ever in public settings, like big group outings on Father’s yacht. Last night was just… different.” I paused to bite down on my bottom lip before whispering, “I’ve never been alone with a half naked guy before.”

Something clicked behind Rayne’s eyes as they widened. “Wait… Elsa… did you and your ex ever, you know… do the do?”

I hesitated, fidgeting with my fingers. “We-”

“Alright, here’s the Honeybunny, as requested.”

Whew! Saved by the Kristoff!

He offered the new spoonful of ice cream to her, but her hand snapped up to block it. Her gaze remained narrowed on me as she told him, “I’m gonna need a sample of every single flavor. Stat.”

“Oh, come on!” Kristoff whined. “Even the ones you’ve already tried?!”

“Especially the ones I’ve already tried.”

Grumbling under his breath, he spat out, “Fine, but then that’s it, I’m cutting you off. Crazy preggo lady or not, you’re either going to have to buy something or beat it.” 

He turned to go, but was halted as Rayne said, “Kristoff.” He looked back over her shoulder to see her eyes dead serious. “Leave the Honeybunny.”

His lips flapped as he puffed out a heavy breath, then handed her the taste spoon and stomped off. 

“That should keep him busy and buy us a few minutes of privacy,” she beamed, shoving the ice cream into her mouth and once more leaving the spoon dangling from her lips. Then she planted her elbows on the counter, propped her chin in her palms and bat her lashes at me. “So… you were saying?”

I could feel that soft heat cozying up inside my cheeks again. “Could we maybe talk about this later? This isn’t particularly a discussion I want to have at a mall nor in my place of work, and we’re two for two right now.”

“Well tough noogies, sweetpea, cuz it’s happening. Now out with it.” 

Exhaling through my nose, I relented. “No, we never… I’ve never… done that. I... told him that I wanted to wait until marriage.”

She released a low whistle - an impressive feat given the spoon still between her lips. “So you’re still rocking your V-card? Who woulda thought you were so traditional? I mean, knowing you, I guess maybe I shoulda figured...”

“That’s just it though, I’m not sure if I am,” I hung my head with a frown. “It’s just… me and him, we made sense as a couple on the surface, at least in my head we did. And sure, we would go out on dates and we would kiss, but… I was just never really interested in going beyond that… with him…”

“But you’re thinking with the right guy, you might?” She bent in further, waggling her eyebrows. “...be interested?” 

My nose wrinkled and I lifted one shoulder.  “I’m honestly not sure… maybe?”

Rayne leaned back once more, holding her hands up, “That’s okay, that’s a big topic to tackle and not one you necessarily have to sort out right this second, so let’s take a step back from that. Start with something smaller. Something like learning to get out of your comfort zone every once in a while.”

I tipped my head to one side, “My comfort zone?”

“Sweetie, I love you, you know I do, but you’re one awkward penguin, plain and simple. Last night is a prime example, and just one of many at that. Now that you’ve left the life of the rich and pampered behind you and are out in this brave new world, you should start putting yourself out there more. You know, try new things, anything really would be good, no matter how small and insignificant it might seem, just to get you out of that protective bubble you tend to keep yourself in.”

“But I like the bubble,” I pouted, my voice small. “It’s all round and comfy and safe.”

She grinned gently, “I know it is, but I think this could really do you some good.”

Grimacing, I managed to snag a thin tendril of my ponytail to twist around my finger. “Okay, so then… what kind of things were you thinking?”

“That brings us to Lesson Two of The Real World for Dummies,” she held up a pair of fingers with a tiny smirk. “Making friends!”

I blinked and then gave a tiny scoff, “I’ve made friends.”

“Name one since you’ve started this whole independence thing.”

“Easy,” I crossed my arms, “Riku.”

She shook her head. “Riku and I are a package deal. He was basically a freebie and doesn’t count.”

Frowning in thought, I tried, “Frozone and Kristoff?”

Rayne gave a derisive snort. “Work friends? You’re gonna have to do better than that.”

My eyebrows knit together before I brightened. “Sora! He’s my friend, he said so himself!”

“Please, that boy would make friends with a toaster given half the chance,” she deadpanned. “In fact, he did once. It involved a sharpie smiley face. Nuff said. No, name one new friendship that you had to put some sort of effort into forming and didn’t simply fall into your lap. Go on. I’m listening.”

...darn it, she was right.

It seemed my hermit was showing.

Her grin turned smug. “That’s what I thought. So here’s what you’re gonna do. You’re gonna go out there and you’re gonna make yourself a new lil friend. That’s part one of getting you out of your comfort zone.”

Oh no.

“There’s a part two?”

“Yup!” She slammed her phone down on the counter before me and ordered, “Call them.”

I gave a nervous chuckle and tossed my hands up in a loose shrug, asking innocently, “Call who?”

“Don’t get cute with me, missy! You think I forgot our lil chat a few days ago, but think again! Enough is enough, you’ve had plenty of time, now stop making excuses and just do it already. I know it’s scary, but this is just something you gotta do! You-”

“I thought I might find you here.”

Back stiffening at the third voice chiming into the conversation, Rayne slowly turned around to see Riku standing there, arms folded under his chest, one foot tapping as he went on, “Isn’t somebody supposed to be staying home and getting lots of bed rest?”

“Tch,” her lip curled slightly, “c’mon, I’m barely showing, just let me live my life!”

Biting back a grin, he took a step towards, “Come on, you, let’s get you back-”

“Jailbreak!” She booked it, darting off into the plastic jungle that was the food court.

His shoulders slumped and he scratched the back of his head as he called after her, “Seriously? You’re gonna make me chase your sorry butt?”

“Yup!” she cackled, strategically positioning herself so that several tables were between her and her husband. 

“Fine,” he smirked slyly, “but you asked for it. Here I come!” He bolted after her.

“Great,” I heard a grumble beside me, turning to see Kristoff standing there with a sour look and roughly forty of those teeny, ice cream laden spoons wedged between all his fingers on both hands. “Now what am I supposed to do with these?”

“Eat them?” I grinned as I plucked one free and closed my mouth around it. Mmmmmm, chocolate! “Otherwise it would be wasteful, which is bad for the environment.”

He gave me a flat look. “Okay, I know you’re being facetious and I don’t care.” One corner of his lips turning up, he lifted one spoon-adorned fist into the air. “I must do my part… for the environment!” Then he crammed five of them into his mouth.

“The planet applauds you for your service and your sacrifice, sir,” I snorted as he ambled off once more.

It was only then that I looked down and realized Rayne’s phone still rested atop the counter before me. Taunting me. Maybe she’d simply forgot it, but honestly? Pretty sure that girl knew exactly what she was doing. With a sigh, I picked it up, my reflection staring back at me in the blackened screen.

...okay, maybe I had been putting it off long enough, to the point of ridiculousness even. Delaying the inevitable was probably only making it worse at this point. I should give them something at least. Some sort of proof of life so that they didn’t think, I don’t know… like I’d run off to join the circus only to get murdered by Bozo the Clown or something. 

Still I hesitated, my fingers frozen around the phone.

“Ma’am, is this man bothering you?”

Welcoming the distraction (perhaps a bit too eagerly), I looked up to spot two familiar figures in matching uniforms. The security guards from last night were standing out in the food court, addressing Rayne now as she used a chair as makeshift cover to hide from Riku.

“Every second I’ve been married to his ass,” she replied dryly.

“Gotcha!” Riku pounced, eliciting a squeal of delight from her as he scooped her up. I snerked as the mall cops just shook their heads and meandered off.

And these two dorks were going to be parents.

My eyes drifted past them to the Lucky Cat Café and I blinked. The stocky brunet was back and manning the register this time, but more importantly, so was that blonde guy. The one I’d seen working at the Pizza Planet just yesterday. How odd. So then, I guess he was currently working both jobs? Barista by day, pizza boy by night? Did he need the munny that bad? Yeesh, how expensive must his rent be?

Having just handed a customer their drink order with a smile and a wave, he then said something to his coworker before I watched him disappear into the back door. Just as it had clicked shut behind him-

“Ta da!” he sprung up on the other side of the counter directly in front of me, arms raised high over his head, startling a yelp from me and nearly making me drop the phone.

Heart hammering in my chest, my wide eyes darted from where he stood now not three feet away from me, to the door I’d just seen him walk through all the way on the other side of the food court.  Then to him. Then to that door. Then back and forth a few more times.

He’d somehow traversed that large gap in the space of mere nano-seconds.

And had managed to swap his coffee shop uniform for Pizza Planet duds no less!

How did he do that?!

“Now I know what you’re thinking,” he beamed at me, striking up a finger. “How did he do that?”

...woah, he was a mind reader too?

“And there’s only one plausible explanation!” he continued with a cocky wink. “Teleportation!”

“Or maybe you just have a twin, you knucklehead,” another voice said as a hand cuffed the blonde on the back of his head.

… oh. A twin. Right.

That made way more sense than the next stage of human evolution being upon us and super powered mutants now walking amongst the rest of us mere muggles.

What a silly notion. Who would have thought that? Certainly not me.

Nope.

“Man, why you gotta always ruin my fun?” the blonde grumbled as he rubbed the fresh sore spot and scowled at the owner of the palm that had just delivered swift justice to his noggin.

“What can I say, Rox? Your suffering gives me life,” Lea shrugged before turning his gaze on me with a grin and waggling his fingers. “Hi again.”

This was the first appearance he’d made all day. It was a bit of a comfort to see him in his work clothes - a likely sign that he hadn’t gotten fired. I would have felt horrible if last night’s antics had cost him his job. In any case, he’d probably arrived just a few minutes ago and would be starting his shift shortly.

Becoming aware of the fact that my fingers were still absently fiddling with the phone, I quickly pocketed it and cleared my throat. “H-hello… wha-”

“Hiya!” a black haired girl shoved Lea out of the way to lean over the counter and get in my face, blasting me with a huge smile and causing me to stagger back a step. She too was decked out in the Pizza Planet attire. I recognized her from my first day of work. “So happy we finally got to come over here! I’ve been dying to meet you!”

My eyebrows rose. “You have…?”

“You kidding? It’s not just any chick that can make Lea here drop pizza dough on his head! Besides, it’s truly an honor to be in the presence of the record holder. I’m in awe.” 

Further up and up those brows went. “The record?”

“Yeah! I mean, that has to be the fastest anyone’s ever planted one on Lea’s li-”

“Xion!” he hissed, clamping a hand over her mouth. “Zip it!”

The blonde - Rox, was it? - smirked evilly beside them, “Lea’s just glad that Ice Palace finally hired a cute girl and- ow!”

I couldn’t see it, but was pretty sure Lea had just kicked him.

“That’s enough out of you two twerps,” Lea grumbled, stabbing a finger out in the direction of the food court. “Table. Now.”

“Fiiiiiine,” Rox huffed out while Xion just shot me another grin and a wave before the pair of them wandered off to find seats.

“Oi, those two, I swear,” he groaned, rubbing the nape of his neck as he turned back towards me, chuckling softly. “Don’t mind the kiddos. Their teasing’s all aimed at me, not you. They mean well, they can just be a lot sometimes.”

I cocked my head. “The… kiddos?”

“Heh, yup!” Then his spine snapped straight and he winced, rapidly shaking his head and waving his hands back and forth in front of him. “Not that they’re my- No, I’m not a- I’m nowhere near old enough to be their- That is to say, uh… they’re my friends. That’s it, no… familial connection whatsoever.”

“Ah… I see,” I said, feeling a tiny tug at one corner of my lips.

It was nice for once that I wasn’t the one that was spazzing out.

Also nice that the two of us could finally manage to hold a conversation.

Sorta.

...it was still a work in progress.

I looked down, gathering my thoughts to find something to say. I immediately regretted it as my eyes inadvertently landed on his chest, prompting my mind to gleefully run a slideshow of his topless exploits from the night before. Face heating, I snapped my gaze back up to meet his, blurting out, “So they didn’t manage to ab y-” I paled. “Nab, I meant nab! They didn’t manage to nab you last night?”

Scratch that. I’d really love to go back to the whole not talking thing.

“Those couple o’ brick-for-brains? Please,” he brushed off, “they couldn’t catch a sedated sloth dragging a one ton slab of concrete behind it. I coulda outrun them blindfolded and with one leg tied behind my back.” Now there was an image. “Gave them the slip no problem, then had my boss sort it all out with them this morning. We’re in the clear!”

“That’s good to hear,” I gave a small sigh of relief.

Then I just stared at him. 

He stared back.

Yup.

Whoooooole lotta staring.

All of it awkward.

I glanced sideways. “So…”

“Oh! Right. Three bars of the Sea Salt Ice Cream please,” he held up a matching number of fingers while his other hand scratched a spot behind his ear.

“A-absolutely! Coming right up!” Yes! Ice cream! Ice cream I could do! I darted over to the bottom freezers, opening them up and crouching down to look for the stack of light turquoise frozen bars. The cold air felt good on my face and I took this chance to recuperate and collect myself. 

Steady, keep it together, girl. You got this. Just another minute more and you’ll be through this social interaction and on the other side. And it should only get easier from here on out, right? ...right? And hey, look on the bright side. This wasn’t going all that bad. So far you’ve gotten through this with little to no mishaps. Sure, there was that one teeny “ab” slip up, but he didn’t even notice… I think. You can do this. You’re doing fine. You haven’t even thought of the Kissident once the entire time he’s been here!

...aaaaaaaaand now you’re thinking about it.

Great. Thanks a lot, brain.

Grabbing the three plastic-wrapped Sea Salts, I slammed the door shut and made my way back towards the register with determination and resolve.

Don’t think about it, don’t think about it, don’t think about it.

No more slip ups. Don’t you do it. Don’t you say it. Don’t you dare.

I rang him up before looking back up at Lea as I offered him the bars. “Will that be all? Could I interest you in anything else-” 

Don’t say “kiss,��� don’t say “kiss,” don’t say “kiss.” 

“-like a cone of the Milky Way? Rockin’ Crunch? Vanilla Lips- Glitz!” My eyes screwed shut. “Vanilla… Vanilla Glitz? Or any of our other fine flavors?”

Well… at least I hadn’t said “kiss” anyway.

He smiled. Oh gosh, he had dimples. “Nope! Just those, thanks.” He paid for his purchase and took the ice cream. With a nod, he turned to go but then hesitated, glancing back down at me. “Listen, that pair of clowns I call friends just went on lunch and I’m not on the clock for another thirty minutes. We’ll be at that table over there,” he crooked his head towards where Xion and Rox now sat chatting over their trays of food. “If you can take a break, you should come hang out with us.” 

I blinked once. Then twice. Then pointed a finger at myself. “...me?”

He was asking me? To join them?

Lea snorted. “Yeah, you. And if you’re worried, don’t be. The kiddos have had all their rabies shots. Just think about it, kay?” He lightly rapped a knuckle against the countertop before walking off with a wave. “Hope to be seeing ya!” 

I watched him approach the other two, giving the back of Rox’s seat a swift kick before easily dodging the swipe Rox threw back at him. Then he mussed up Xion’s hair as he tossed the ice cream bars into the center of the table and spun an empty chair around so he could sit in it backwards. I watched his mouth move as he told them something before they all burst into laughter.

They seemed nice. And they’d invited me to sit with them.

...wow, that’d sounded so high school.

Which, by the way, was something I’d never been good at, surprise surprise. And I wasn’t talking about the academic part of it, no, that’d been fine. But when it came to all those cliques and that whole popularity contest and just in general trying to fit it? Yeah, no. That hadn’t been for me. At lunch times, I’d only ever sat with my ex and his friends, and even then only because it was what was expected of me. His buddies had only ever ignored me anyway. If it’d been up to me, I never would have sat with anyone at all. Risk someone actually trying to start a conversation with me? Nu uh. Too scary. Left to my own devices, I probably would have just secured a table all to myself and built a fort out of trays to hide in and shut out the rest of the world.

Needless to say, the thought of joining Lea and his friends? Frigging terrified me.

Which is why it wasn’t going to happen.

Thanks, but no thanks!

I’ll just keep chilling over here inside Ice Palace, aka my beloved Fortress of Solitude. Or rather… Fortress of Almost Solitude, since Kristoff was still around. But you’d hardly even know he was there. He was just off in a corner, still contentedly making his way through those taste spoons.

But as I looked back to that happy trio out there, I frowned. Something was nagging me. Needling at the back of my mind.

Took me a second to realize that it was Rayne’s words from earlier.

That I needed to get out of my comfort zone. That I had to put myself out there and try new things. That I should put effort into making some friends. 

The effort in this case being something so simple as sitting at a table.

One tiny act that seemed so insignificant and yet so intimidating at the same time.

I watched them for a few minutes more. Then I looked to the clock hanging on the wall. I was due for my own lunch break.

...oh god, was I really going to do this?

Another heartbeat of indecision. Then I lifted my chin, squared my shoulders, marched into the back room to grab my paper bag lunch before exiting into the food court, heading straight for their table.

Apparently yes. I was really doing this.

Operation Make Friends was a go.

Courage don’t fail me now.

...pretty please? 

Author's note: Will Elsa ever call this mysterious "them"? How will Elsa's next thrilling adventure in human interaction go? Will Operation Make Friends be an amazing, glorious success or end in epic, tragic failure? Will Kristoff get a terrible tummy ache from eating all those lil ice cream samples? Stay tuned for the answers to all those questions and more! (Except for that last question... some things were just meant to always remain a mystery...)

Thanks for reading, I super duper appreciate it! And an extra BIG thank you to my new followers, as well as to those of you who hit that like button on the last chapter, seeing that always brings the biggest, goofiest smile to my face!

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER || NEXT CHAPTER

[elsanna-shenanigans]

August Contest Submission #15: Smile

It was hard to ruin something so beloved, but Elsa figured that the clumsy, loud redhead was doing a pretty good job of that. Nothing against her cousin, but the girl was definitely not the book-loving type. Anna was more the type that went to the library to find a nice lonely corner to ball up sleep in between classes. Why the girl got a job at their university’s library she could only assume. Probably money issues.

Today though, Elsa decided to focus on another perplexing dilemma. One that was actually beginning to bother her. Well, two there were actually two issues, but Elsa had just come to the conclusion that the two were likely related. That’s the part that made her stomach turn.

  First problem: Hans keeps smiling at her.

  The library houses two redheaded evening keepers, her cousin and him. Hans is a smooth-talking, slick-haired, gentleman. It sounds good on paper, even Elsa had to admit that. But something about the way he smiled at her just didn’t sit right. He had been working here from even before Elsa became a student two years ago, but as of exactly three weeks and two days ago, every time they made eye-contact, he just smiled. He never said anything to her. He never got too close. He’d just smile. From a distance. Except that one time when he brought a reference book to the counter that she had been looking for, and the proximity did not make the whole situation feel any less icky.

  That brings up the second problem: this is the fifth time she found a poem tucked between the first few pages of a book she requested. The very first time was when he brought out that reference book which was also the second time he had done that creepy smile.

  Were they bad poems? Actually quite the opposite. They were excellent. Elsa hated how much she enjoyed them, especially when she would look up and just see him smiling. They ranged from beautiful, to cryptic, to (as of this particular one) amusing. So yes, Elsa was guilty of requesting a book she had no interest in for the sheer purpose of reading the next poem. And yes, she did feel gross about it. 

  A feeling made worse when she returned the book in a few minutes, and caught him smiling next to a shelf as Anna fumbled and nearly dropped the novel Elsa practically shoved into her hands before leaving.

  …

  Anna found comfort in a steaming hot cup of coffee flavored sweet milk. That’s what Kristoff called it anyway. He’s the barista at the only coffee shop on campus. And also her ex. But apparently they ended on good enough terms that he doesn’t spit in her coffee. She thinks… she hopes…

  Don’t think about it.

  She instead thought about the fact that some asshole that barely found time to zip up his pants this morning and definitely did not find the time to brush his teeth, is giving her cousin a hard time. Yes, Anna was one hundred percent positive that this guy did not find his toothbrush yet for the day, considering the way Elsa’s nose crinkled ever so noticeably. She was way too polite to tell him about it though. Instead, she took the combined verbal and olfactory assault he spewed. He asked for a latte. He got a latte. He claims he didn’t ask for that, he wanted a regular coffee. Idiot.

  It’s too early for this.

  While Anna contemplated saving her shy cousin, Kristoff stepped in and shooed the guy away. He’s a good dude like that.

  Anna loosened her grip on her drink and smiled down at the cup. The people around her probably think she’s crazy, but she didn’t really mind that. She was used to that. They wouldn’t understand.

  She liked Kristoff, she really did. Like a brother.

  That was the problem for both of them. He definitely did not see her like a sister and she couldn’t see anything more than that. They couldn’t go on.

  Which made her feel guilty that she hasn’t said anything about the little surprises he’s been leaving for her. This time it was a rose. Before this, it was a cartoon monkey! And before that, they were just really pretty designs.

  It meant she had to wait a little longer for her morning coffees, but she didn’t mind. She always liked his doodles, but recently it’s like he’s gotten wicked good. And before, she would have to catch him doing it absentmindedly on a napkin when it was slow, but as of about two weeks ago, he’s been going to town on her coffee cups. And she was not about to complain. Though she probably should. 

  When he catches her admiring the gorgeous marker-drawn rose, she feels a pang of guilt in his smile. It makes it hard to stomach the coffee. So she got up, half-drunk coffee in her hand and she took her leave wordlessly. His gifts were sweet, but they wouldn’t change anything.

  …

  Elsa stood outside the library and took a deep breath. It didn’t help. She still didn’t find the strength to push the door open. It had been a frustrating day and she wasn’t sure she could deal with seeing Hans’s ‘smile’ today, even if she really wanted to enjoy the poem. She was debating if it was worth it (and getting angry with herself for being unable to convince herself that it wouldn’t be) when her cousin bumped into her, late as usual.

  “H-hey, are you uh… aren’t you going in?” Anna sounded out of breath for some reason.

  Elsa was still debating that but she shook her head anyway. “Maybe not today.”

  “Oh…”

  Elsa looked over the shorter girl and frowned slightly to herself, taking note of Anna’s flushed appearance and slumped shoulders. Poor girl must have run all the way here and still ended up late. 

  Elsa liked her cousin even if they weren’t very similar. Or maybe that was part of why she liked Anna so much. The other reasons… she refused to think about. But no matter what, Elsa just couldn’t find a single reason why Anna would find interest in working at the library. There were plenty of other places to work. Like the coffee shop, they were looking for a cashier to work evenings and the pay is probably better than what the school is giving her.

  “Why do you work here anyway?” Elsa’s face grew slightly horrified when she realized how bluntly she had spoken. “Oh no, I didn’t mean it like-”

  Anna just laughed it off. “I know what you’re trying to say, I didn’t take it that way.” Elsa didn’t have a single insulting bone in her body after all. Anna looked away and rocked on heels, probably growing impatient Elsa figured. She was late, and Elsa was just holding her up. The blonde swallowed her guilt. “Morning classes mostly, so ya know,” Anna shrugged awkwardly. “And it uhh… it has its perks I guess.”

  Elsa tilted her head. More perplexion. What perks could the library have to offer someone that doesn’t really enjoy reading? Especially someone like Anna. Elsa considered that. Then she considered the fact that the girl’s face was getting even redder. Then she thought about Hans. Then she blanched at the connection her brain made. Anna could do better than a slimeball like Hans. Even if he writes amazing poetry… Somehow she loathed the idea of seeing his smile even more now. 

  That was enough to encourage her to call it a night and head back to her room.

  …

  “Why do you work here anyway?” Anna cheekily shot the question back at her cousin, who only looked at her with a small and very tired smile. Seriously, it looked like she barely had the energy to maintain the tiny curve upwards at the corner of her lip. Only Elsa could pull off the ‘overworked, underpaid’ look so beautifully.

  Anna mentally slapped herself for that thought. The question probably sounded like effortless teasing, but she practiced saying that at least a hundred times to avoid fumbling when she finally spoke to Elsa after the crowd died off.

  “Evening classes.” Elsa replied with breathless humor. “And, you know, the perks.”

  Anna laughed but she didn’t get it. All the free coffee in the world couldn’t get her to deal with the sludge that drudged through these doors at odd hours of the wee morning. Sweaty gym guys that don’t seem to know how to use the showers before they deal with people. Hungover assholes who are irritated at literally everything. Lecturers who think they have some sort of special privileges here. Anna has seen all sorts crawl through that little door. She wouldn’t deal with them. Not for anything.

  Elsa smiled again and looked toward the door to the backroom. Kristoff disappeared back there a while ago to grab some cups they needed. It was the only reason Anna wasn’t yet nursing a cup to her lips.

  “I should probably go check on Kristoff.” Elsa excused herself and disappeared behind the little black door.

  Anna huffed and pouted. Could Elsa be meaning Kristoff? Is he the perk? She gagged at the thought. Kristoff wasn’t a bad guy, in fact he was a really nice guy. Sometimes too nice. Sometimes too shy. Really quiet and to himself… a lot like Elsa.

  Anna grimaced. She was about to leave when she saw Elsa and Kristoff walk out of the backroom. Kristoff was laughing about something while Elsa looked a little upset. Her cheeks were flaring. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that she was carrying all the cups and he was just carrying the one with the design. Anna’s cup. A cute little winking penguin with a bowtie. Elsa practically barked at him and he rushed over to finally get started on Anna’s drink, but the girl wasn’t really sure she wanted it anymore.

  …

  They were both nervous. They were both aware of their own nervousness. Moreso, they were both aware of each other’s nervousness. Elsa couldn’t look away from Anna’s bouncing leg and Anna couldn’t unsee the way Elsa’s lip quivered. They hadn’t spent the night in the same room since they were preteens. 

  But this was a necessity. Anna approached Elsa about needing help in chemistry. Her cousin was a biochem major after all, and always maintained some of the top grades in her class. Anna was struggling. It only made sense, and after some negotiation, and a whole lot of begging, Elsa agreed to help. Per their agreement, the two met in Elsa’s room that Saturday night. After going over their schedules, this was the only night Anna was off that led into a morning that Elsa was off.

  It was… awkward. They were awkward.

  But it was mostly done. Elsa was pretty good at figuring out how to explain things to Anna in a way she understood and Anna had no issues hanging on to Elsa’s every word. They both knew Anna still probably needed help, but Elsa set her on a good course. 

  “Can I borrow your notes?” Anna already had the binder in her hand and was standing as if she was getting ready to go. “You won’t need these right now right? You’re way past this level anyway.”

  Elsa blushed. “That should be okay I think, but…”

  Her words fell off and the awkwardness between them grew just a little more. 

  “C-can I get your number in case I need some more help?” Anna struggled with her words, trying to play off the tremble in her voice with some laughter. “I mean, we’re cousins at the same school, so it’s kind of w-weird we don’t have each other’s numbers, right? I think… or maybe it’s not weird, I mean… heh…”

  Anna caught herself just in time to see Elsa close the cover of the binder and hand it back to her. She didn’t even know when the blonde took it. But there it was, seven glorious digits written on the first page. 

  Elsa avoided eye contact. “For whenever you need to reach me. Or want to, I suppose.”

  No words formed in Anna’s mouth. It was probably too dry. Instead she just nodded.

  …

  Elsa’s handwriting was stunning but the words themselves were absolutely boring, and soon Anna found herself just teasing through the pages of Elsa’s binder. She had apparently left the messy folder she kept her chemistry notes in in Elsa’s room. Neither of them were brave enough to face that awkwardness again so soon and so when Elsa told her about it the next day at the coffee shop, Anna only shrugged and said something about a hostage exchange later. Whatever it was it made Elsa smile, and that at least, made Anna’s day after everything.

  It took four days.

  Four days for Anna to shoot up in bed in the middle of the night remembering what else she stored in that folder.

  She had a hard time paying attention during the lectures for chemistry. They weren’t nearly as exciting as lab days. So she often found herself getting lost in thought, writing short verses as they came to mind alongside a certain blonde she definitely should not have been thinking about. And of course, since she wrote them in chemistry, usually on the back of her notes, she naturally stored them in the folder with the other notes.

  The folder that was in Elsa’s room. The folder that would expose her.

  Her heart hammered in her chest as she leaped out of the bed and scrambled around for Elsa’s binder. She tripped as she pulled the notes out from under her bed and a few of the papers scattered. She’d deal with that later. She stumbled around the room, flicking on her light, annoying her roommate, and dialing the number on the page she managed to find among the mess, all at the same time.

  As she chanted for Elsa to pick up, her roommate’s protests falling on deaf ears, from the corner of her eye, Anna spotted something that made her do a double-take. She knelt and picked up a sheet of paper just as the line clicked, a familiar looking fancy bird winking at her from the page.

  “Hey.” It didn’t sound like Elsa had just woken up, it sounded like she had been up for a while. Like she was expecting this. “…Hello?”

  “Hey, it’s uhh… it’s A-anna,” she stumbled as she dug through some more papers on the ground, finding more and more familiar styles and some that were a breath-taking surprise. “I umm.. Are you…” Anna couldn’t think straight but somehow the words she was thinking ended up coming through the other line.

  “Hey… are you busy next Saturday?”