A drabble series written for the FHWM Friday the 13th prompt event.
Doorman Kristoff has a run of bad luck when Anna, dressed as the Morton Salt Girl for her friend's Halloween party, walks into the building with a bluster of wind and a dripping wet umbrella. Is it Friday the 13th? Or is it just Anna?
Part I: The Umbrella
Dark clouds stormed outside as Kristoff set up the yellow “wet floor” signs in the lobby.
As if on cue, a tiny person in a shiny yellow raincoat walked in with a bluster of wind and slipped on the water dripping from her open umbrella.
Kristoff stepped forward to catch her arm but they both fell.
His heart stopped when her hood fell back and revealed a mess of reddish-blond hair, bluish-green eyes, and too many freckles.
“Don’t you know it’s bad luck to open umbrellas inside?” he glowered.
“But I’m the Morton Salt Girl!”
“I hate Halloween," he sighed.
I recommend listening to the song All I Need by Within Temptation before or while reading this fic
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Happiness had lasted so little, Anna thought as she walked through the halls of the castle, the windows lighting her steps with bright sun rays. At first she couldn’t believe it, Elsa returning to the castle, returning to Arendelle, to her side.
She had prepared everything for her sister’s arrival, redesigned her old room to be worthy of a goddess. Even the villagers were so happy with her return. Everything would be as before. Before that damn Ahtohallan took her sister away from her. Finally Elsa had understood that she didn’t need to live far into a enchanted forest to fulfill her duty as a bridge between humans and nature, between humanity and the divine. And Anna received her back with her arms and heart wide open.
It hadn't been long, just a few months. But in those months back to a loneliness to which she never wanted to return, Anna understood many things. The most important, in whose hands lay her heart. At first she thought she was going crazy, that isolation had taken a toll on her sanity and was finally losing contact with reality. But re-evaluating her life until that moment, analyzing the experiences lived and the decisions made, it all made sense.
Struggling with the uncertainty of the newly discovered feelings and the happiness of seeing her sister returning to the castle, Anna opened the doors once again, this time waiting for the appearance of a water horse and Elsa’s warm smile.
What she didn’t expect, however, was Elsa leading a small contingent of Northuldra people crossing the streets of her kingdom.
"We will stablish diplomatic relations between the Northuldra people and Arendelle" Elsa had said with a smile after returning the tight hug with which the queen had received her.
Anna had accepted it without hesitation, never doubting her sister. And so, she had entered their lives. The one sent as a representative of Yelana and the people of the sun, Honeymaren.
In the beginning, Anna thought it would soon get used to the changes, eventually everything would be as before, right?
How wrong she was.
Anna's walk was interrupted by a memory, a painful one. The first time she felt her heart was torn from inside her of chest, sadly not the last. Elsa was taking a tour of the castle next to Honeymaren, explaining what each room or gallery was. Anna followed, issuing comments here and there.
Upon entering the portrait room, Elsa began telling her guest what each one meant or represented. While both admired a huge painting depicting a field scene, Honeymaren's hand had carelessly rested on Elsa's lower back, as if it were a gesture she frequently made. Elsa had looked at her and smiled, continuing with her explanation of the painting or telling some detail about the painter, Anna didn’t remember. She only remembered a sharp ringing in her ears as she felt her heart begin to crack.
The queen clenched her fist and resumed her way. She was going to her private study, she had something to do there, even if she didn't remember what it was. From the windows behind her desk, Anna spotted the garden behind the castle, a small and secluded paradise that bore another painful memory that afflicted her soul. A few days ago she had invited Elsa to a picnic there, but when she arrived her sister was sitting next to Honeymaren, and the girl was putting back a lock of hair that had escaped the blonde's braid, caressing it delicately. The gesture was tender and terribly intimate. Anna's heart felt a tug again, as if it was about to sink into the depths of her own personal hell, and a new crack opened. The pain was unbearable. The center of her chest became a dark and deep emptiness that threatened to devour what was left of her happiness.
She tried not to pay attention, ignoring every painful beat that reminded her of what she was loosing, and focused on trying to enjoy the sunny day and the picnic in the garden. She didn’t succeed. It rained in her soul and she was sure it was all tears she wasn't shedding.
Sitting back at her desk, Queen Anna brought the documents she would have to review today. Trying to protect her dying heart behind a wall of routine and responsibilities. That same morning, during breakfast, she had asked Elsa to help her review these documents, she was explaining their importance to the economic future of the kingdom when she was interrupted by Honeymaren.
"Today we will go for a walk in the village. I asked Elsa to be my guide and she accepted, of course" she said putting a hand on the blonde's wrist.
Anna nodded and didn't say another word for the rest of the breakfast. She didn't dare to look up, she didn't want to see more. At the first opportunity she got up and left that room without looking back. She could no longer be there, the situation oppressed her, the space was not enough, the air was too dense to breathe
There she was, with Elsa back in Arendelle but alone anyway.
She knew she would never do anything to oppose her sister's happiness, but her heart already had so many cracks that she was surprised that it was still functioning. Actually, she wasn't sure it was still beating. God, it was so hard to breathe. She felt like she was back in that cave when she had thought that Elsa was gone forever. Only this time, that seemed to be true.
A sob escaped from the depths of her being, she could no longer contain it. She put a hand to her chest as if trying to contain the deep and lacerating pain. And she cried. She cried as if she no longer had anything to lose, as if she didn't mind running out of tears.
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Among broken sobs it was where Elsa found her, with her face buried in her arms, trembling from the effort to contain so much pain but falling apart anyway. Anna didn’t hear her enter the study or approach her and she didn’t even flinch when she took her in her arms, pulling her away from the desk, the crying came back stronger.
"I'm so sorry" Elsa whispered repeatedly, as if singing a prayer that would make everything better.
Anna no longer had the strength to fight.
"Just go, Elsa. Go with her and be happy. God knows you deserve it."
Elsa's suspicions were confirmed in that moment and she smiled at her True Love.
"I can't be happy if it's not by your side, Anna" she said as she took the redhead's face in her hands and kissed her deeply.
Anna melted in her arms, that kiss had brought her back to life. When they separated, they both smiled.
"But, Honeymaren..."
"She has been behaving strangely lately and I don't like it one bit. The thing she did earlier was the last straw. I sent her to live at one of the inns in the town. She can do her job as ambassador from there, and I..."
It wasn’t necessary to finish, Anna threw herself on her in a scorching kiss. The rest of the world faded away.
Elsa wondered sometimes if she looked like her mother. She would steal glances in window panes and soup tureens for days, comparing her muddled reflection with the royal portrait. Trying to see something, anything, in old oils and faded tapestries.
The queen's old hand mirror caught her attention one restless night, as she stared out the window onto the fjord. Even the water seemed to mimic her unease, the waves beating against the perimeter walls.
She thought she saw her mother in the shape of her eyes, and she almost found a smile...until the silvered glass froze over and shattered beneath her fingers. Her careless, cursed, fingers.
And in the broken pieces, Elsa saw she could never be her mother.
Tearing herself away from the broken shards, she sat down on her bed, cradling her hands in one another. “We’ve been through this.” She whispered softly to herself. “Why now? Why this?” A sound from down the hall quickly stifled any further thought.
“Elsa?” a voice called. “Are you awake?”
A candlelit shadow peeked through the door, followed by her sister. “Oh you are awake. I thought I heard you. What’s wrong?”
“Wrong?” Elsa blinked, “Why do you think something is wrong?”
“Well for one, you’re never up this late unless you’re working on something for Arendelle. And two, you’re cradling your hands again. Did something happen?”
Elsa sighed and gestured towards the mirror. “It was mother’s, I was trying to see...something. I don’t know what went wrong.”
“Well for one thing you’re trying to check your reflection in the dark.” Anna laughed and sat down beside her sister, placing the candle on the bedside stand. “C’mon. You can tell me.”
“It’s just...okay. When you laugh, I can see mother in your smile. When you’re excited, I can feel her warmth. When you’re sliding down the halls in your stockings I remember her love for adventure. I don’t see any of her in me.”
The two sisters sat in silence, each one lost in a different world of thought.
“But that’s where you’re wrong, Elsa.” Anna said, finally breaking the stillness. “Mother had a big heart. She loved father, she loved us, and she loved Arendelle. And so do you. That’s something I see all the time in you; mother’s love.”
“You mean that, don’t you?” Elsa asked, wiping a tear off her cheek. “You really see that in me?”
Anna smiled. “All the time. You’re more than you give yourself credit for.”
“Thank you, Anna. That means the world.”
A drabble series written for the FHWM Friday the 13th prompt event.
Doorman Kristoff has a run of bad luck when Anna, dressed as the Morton Salt Girl for her friend's Halloween party, walks into the building with a bluster of wind and a dripping wet umbrella. Is it Friday the 13th? Or is it just Anna?
Part III: The Crack
Anna slipped on some stray grains of spilled salt, but the doorman caught her shoulders.
“Thanks,” she simpered, then pointed at his nametag, flashed her eyes at him flirtatiously, and added, “Kristoff.”
She took her wet umbrella from him and winked as she walked away.
“Miss, watch out for that-”
She stubbed the toe of her Mary Jane and fell forward.
“-crack!”
She forgot about the excruciating pain in her hands and knees when Kristoff's hands wrapped around her waist and lifted her up.
She spun around in his arms to assure him, "Don't worry, my mom already passed away.”
A drabble series written for the FHWM Friday the 13th prompt event.
Doorman Kristoff has a run of bad luck when Anna, dressed as the Morton Salt Girl for her friend's Halloween party, walks into the building with a bluster of wind and a dripping wet umbrella. Is it Friday the 13th? Or is it just Anna?
Part II: Salty
Anna’s heart sank when the floppy-haired doorman narrowed his beautiful brown eyes and forced her unlucky umbrella shut.
Then she caught his eyes lingering on her white-stockinged legs. “Nice Halloween costume.”
She playfully tucked the full-size Morton’s container she thought was sealed under her arm and watched his lopsided grin turn into a snarl when the salt hit the marble floor behind her.
"Oops!"
He pursed his lips and shot her a nasty glare before muttering, "Just my luck."
"I can clean that up," she said with a hopeful grin.
"You couldn't have at least thrown it OVER your shoulder?"
“They’re late.” Anna sighed and stretched her arms behind her head. The queen and the princess had been waiting in the hall for nearly twenty minutes with no sign of the council.
“I know, but there isn’t much I can do save for sending Gerda or Kai on a wild goose chase. So please sit properly, I’m certain they’ll be here soon.” Elsa rearranged her papers for the third time that afternoon, trying to keep her thoughts in order. There was a lot to be done to convince the council to have new crowns forged, and with Anna on board, it was likely to be a very heated discussion.
“Fine. But if they’re not here in ten minutes I’m getting a snack.” Anna fluffed out her skirt and made her dress as proper as she could muster. After begging her sister to be a part of this meeting, she didn’t want to entirely let her down. She had just finished smoothing out her bodice when the door creaked open.
“Good afternoon your majesty. Oh! And your highness! I didn’t expect you to be here. Will you be staying for the duration of the meeting?” Lidvin said with a curt bow.
“She will.” Elsa replied, “Please, take a seat.”
“Of course, your majesty. As per our last conversation we went over some of the finer points as to why a change of crown may or may not be a good thing. I conferred with the council and even brought it up to some of the people of Arendelle and we maintain our stance on the matter.”
Elsa quirked an eyebrow and glanced at her sister. Although Anna was doing her best to look proper and princess-like, there was a look of confusion on her face. “Councilman Lidvin, are you saying that for the sake of familiarity the crown has not been changed once in the four hundred years Arendelle has been a kingdom?”
“No,” he said hesitantly, “but this is different.”
“Of course it’s different!” Anna said, nearly jumping out of her seat. “My sister, er, the queen is different, so the crowns should be too. It can’t be the first time a new king decided he wanted a new crown for himself so why is this such a big deal? It’s not like we’re tearing down the castle walls and cancelling trades, we’re just giving the place some redecorating! Right? And if anyone knows the people of Arendelle, it’s me.” Anna finished crossing her arms and put on what she hoped was her best royal expression.
If either the council or the queen had something to say it was momentarily lost in the wake of Anna’s outburst.
“Councilman,” the queen started, suppressing a giggle, “my sister does make very valid points. While you may have questioned a few people here and there she in the one who is out throughout the kingdom on a nearly daily basis. If anyone would know what Arendelle wants, it would be her.” She smiled softly at Anna. “I am certain that Arendelle and her people would embrace a change.”
The other council members nodded in agreement and even Lidvin could see he was fighting a losing battle.
“Then if it pleases your majesty and your highness, shall I take the drafts to be finalized?” He said with a stiff bow.
“Of course.” Elsa said with a nod. “And I shall have Anna accompany you.”
The princess looked confused. “You want me to go with him?”
“Absolutely. I’m sure he would love your input on the matter.”
“Great! I have a bundle of ideas.” Anna exclaimed, bouncing from her seat to the door, leaving Lidvin to follow rather sulkily.
“Well,” Elsa said, addressing the remaining council, “if there’s nothing more to discuss, shall we be on our way?”
There was a general murmur of consent as they filed out. But one member stalled behind.
“Just between you and I, your majesty, I did always like the princess’ spirt.”
The queen gave a soft laugh. “As do I, councilman. As do I.”
“I still don’t understand why this is an issue.” Elsa said rather bluntly.
“We want to maintain a certain level of familiarity, of tradition. If the people see the queen in a crown different than that of her parents, it can lead to confusion and mistrust.” The council and the queen had been discussing the issue of the headpiece for nearly two hours with no plausible solution in sight. “Surely you can understand that.”
Elsa quirked an eyebrow. “Mistrust? Councilman Lidvin I am certain that after what happened at my coronation and the events that followed, if anyone were to mistrust me they would have long left this kingdom and it’s queen. At this point you are merely trying to trick the people into thinking that its ruler is the same as every other one; which she most certainly is not.”
“Your majesty, it’s not just that. The crown is a symbol of Arendelle and what she stands for.”
“It was a symbol of what my mother and father believed in and created. You still act as though I am all but eighteen and am still in need of constant supervision. I cannot deny that you have done well on my mother and father’s orders to keep my sister and I safe until my coronation, but your ways of thinking are in the past. This is a fresh start for Arendelle, I want our crowns to reflect that.”
“Here,” Elsa said, sliding a few leafs of paper towards Lidvin, “With the help of some local artisans I have prepared a few ideas for you to mull over in the time being.”
“Until tomorrow then, your majesty?” He replied, gathering up the sheets.
Elsa nodded and gestured to the door, watching the council slowly file out and talk amongst themselves.
——————————————————————————————————————————
Anna could hear the dull shuffle from the foot of the stairs; the murmured partings and the soft footsteps as the council left the room. She knew from the tone in their good-byes that the meeting hadn’t gone exactly as they wanted, so her sister would be forced to spend another tedious afternoon with them. But all that was forgotten for the time being: Anna was promised that as soon as the meeting was over, Elsa would spend time with her, doing nearly anything she wanted. The princess eagerly made her way over to the door just as the last of the council passed through and poked her head inside.
“Elsa! Okay so I was thinking that we could-“ Anna stopped mid-sentence. Her sister was still seated at the head of the table, her hand partly run through her hair and a look of exasperation that she hadn’t worn in a very long time. “Uh oh,” Anna plunked herself down and leaned on the table, “what happened?”
The queen sighed and brushed her bangs out of her face. “The council is insisting that I take on mother’s crown instead of fashioning my own. Our own.”
Anna frowned. “Why do they want that?”
“Because they want to keep traditions. Preserve the old ways. Things that mean nothing to the kingdom and people of Arendelle but everything to them.” Elsa sighed. “It’s been a trying experience to make them see that it’s a new era, and new values come into play. I’m not abandoning our core values and traditions, I just feel that using mother’s crown is a step backwards.”
“Can’t you just fire them?” Anna asked, playing absently with one of her braids.
Elsa laughed. “I could, but then I would be council-less and have quite an angry mob to deal with in the aftermath. Despite their often stubborn ways, they are good in what they do.”
“Hmm. What if the queen and the princess were against it?” Anna straightened up and fluffed her skirt. “They can’t possible deny the both of us.”
“W-well I don’t think your voice would make a particular difference, to be honest.” Elsa giggled. “The fact of the matter is I am getting through to them, slowly but surely. Besides, I doubt you could sit patiently through an entire meeting without nodding off or pulling hidden pastries from your skirt hems.”
“That was only…” Anna paused to count briefly on her fingers, “six times! And they were good too. Now I have to remember what dress that was…”
“…the point is I want to help. Please Elsa? I’ll behave and have positive input and I’ll even read off notes if you want me too! I like the idea of having new crowns and new designs! With flowers and ships!”
For a full minute, Elsa sat in silent thought. “Alright, you can join me next time.”
“Really?! Thank you!” Anna jumped up to hug her sister but the hem of her dress caught the edge of her chair leaving the princess face-first on the floor.
Elsa laughed. “ As long as there isn’t any of that.”
“Hadn’t really planned on it.” Anna grinned, pushing herself off the floor and dusting herself off. “But in the mean time there’s a cake in the kitchen that’s just begging to be sampled. Are you coming?”
“Go on ahead,” Elsa waved dismissively, “I’ll catch up in a minute.”
Okay! But I can’t guarantee that there will be anything left by the time you get there.” Anna called out, skipping out the doors.
“Thank you, I will look into it and send a messenger when I’ve come to a decision.” Elsa nodded to Gerda. “And if you will, send up a tea tray in about an hour’s time.”
An afternoon of meetings and politics had finally ended and the queen was about to spend a few more hours in the study going over some papers in silence. It wasn’t free time, but it was still a change in pace from dealing with people face to face.
Every so often she would hear her sister go by, either sprinting down the hall like a deer outrunning a wolf or attempting to sneak past unnoticed like a mouse avoiding a cat; there was no in between. With every attempt by Anna, Elsa laughed a little and with every laugh, a little less paperwork got finished. The queen sighed to herself and got up to close the door in an attempt to muffle the outside noise when she heard her name.
“Elsa? Elsa! Can you hear me?”
The voice sounded like Anna's, but it seemed odd that she would call for her sister when every other time she would merely come and talk to her in person.
“Anna?” Elsa called out wandering down the hall, “Are you alright?”
“I’m okay! Just stuck!” The voice came from the end of the hall, shortly before the spiral staircase that lead to the bottom floor. When Elsa came to the top of the stairs she saw her sister there, head between the bannisters and desperately trying to pull herself free.
“W-what did you do, Anna?” Elsa asked, stifling a giggle.
“Oh good, you’re here. So I had brought Geoffrey in-“
“Geoffrey?” The queen said, quirking an eyebrow.
“Yeah! You know him, the gosling I brought for you months ago! Anyway, so I was taking him on a tour of the castle since he’s big enough and he got loose so I was chasing him through the halls and that’s when I chased him past your study. I was this close to grabbing him so I made a jump but he made a jump too right through the railings! Well, I had already made my move so I got stuck like that! And believe me I’ve tried everything to get out but nothing works!” Anna grinned sheepishly.
“I told you that you were going to get yourself hurt one of these days if you kept goofing around with the wildlife.” Elsa sighed, looking for possible solutions to get her sister out of her predicament.
“I’m not hurt,” Anna grumbled, “just stuck. Besides, when’s the last time anyone had to rescue me?” “What about that time you got stuck in the apple tree? Or when you fell into the fjords? Oh, or perhaps that time you spent all day in the market with those questionable traders and caught something so evil that you were bed-ridden for three days?” Elsa grinned, knowing full well there was a list a foot long of things that her sister had gotten into.
“Okay but those weren’t wildlife-based accidents they were just….me.” Anna scowled. “Are you gonna help me or do I have to eat dinner like this?”
Elsa laughed. “Dinner? Well I suppose if that’s your top priority, I could see about finding a way to set you free. But you have to cooperate and listen carefully, understand?”
Anna nodded from between the bars. “I’ll listen. But you’re not gonna get me out that easy.”
“We’ll see about that. What you need to do is carefully pull your left ear out, followed by your right. When you’re done that, tilt your head forwards and slowly back up. It should work. Just, please remember to go slowly.” Elsa pleaded, weaving her fingers together. She knew how hasty her sister could be, and rushing this operation wouldn’t benefit anyone.
“Alright,” Anna nodded again, “let’s give this a shot!” And with surprisingly controlled movements, the princess did exactly as she was instructed, managing to free herself with little difficulty.
“It worked! That’s amazing!” Anna laughed and spun around, forcing Elsa to take a step back to avoid the skirt hems. “You’re amazing!”
Elsa laughed. “Well I am good at solving problems, that’s for certain.”
“You are! I’m gonna go find Geoffrey and then we can both thank you in person!” Anna grabbed her sister in the biggest bear hug she could muster before sliding down the banister to seek out her feathered friend.
Elsa laughed softly to herself and headed back to the study. “I look forward to it.”
