"I'm okay. I'm a storm."
"Your majesties! Are wewe okay? What happened?!" Anna was trying to sit up on the icy covered floor while pressing a hand to her forehead as a bead of blood leaked from behind her palm. Elsa was crouching down trying to help her sister sit up and repeating over an over "I'm so sorry!"
Anna never heard the guard au her sister over the throbbing in her temple. She felt a giggle escape her lungs and squeeze past her lips. She felt her arms becoming unbearably cold though and looked to her left and right to see her sister's hands there, along with ice crystallizing around her sleeves. She looked up to see her sister's panic stricken eyes boring into hers, but she was too out of it at the moment to register it.
"Elsa, you're freezing me again." Again a laugh bubbled out from her mouth, and Elsa immediately let go and jumped up, and without her keeping Anna stable Anna fell over again, making yet another laugh come out of the princess.
Elsa was out of her mind with concern and fear of hurting her sister, and she didn't know what to do. The guard clumsily skidded over to the princess to pick her up.
"Don't worry my queen, I'll get her!" He reached her and bent over to gather the young woman in his arms, and with very little grace did he eventually manage to pick Anna up without slipping and falling, and he started back towards the door.
Anna was starting to come back now, and she finally registered sobs coming from a corner of the room. "Elsa, I'm okay! Elsa?" She tried to extend her neck back to look behind the guard carrying her when something touched her eye and burnt it. "Ah!" She raised a hand to wipe away the blood and to apply pressure again. "You're going to be fine princess." The guard alisema as they left the room and went down the hall.
Anna finally recognized the voice. "Eirik! I'm fine now! I need to go back! Elsa is crying! I need to be there for her!"
"You need a nurse for your wound! Your sister will be fine. She's used to being alone."
Anna gasped and slapped Eirik with her bloody hand. Out of shock he accidentally dropped Anna and rubbed at his smarting, blood smeared, cheek. Anna quickly got up and scolded, "How dare you! How could wewe say that?!"
"Well, it's true! wewe sure weren't trying to bust down her door! Just knocking on it! wewe forced her to be alone!"
"You are out of line Eirik. Hold your tongue before I rip it out of your mouth."
The blood boiled inside the guards cheeks. He bowed down low in respect hoping for mercy. "Please, your majesty, I didn't mean to- I'm just- The slap made me a little unwary of who I was speaking to. I pray you, forgive me." He waited there in silence. "Princess?" He lifted up and saw Anna down the hall closing her door behind her with a loud bang.
"Elsa! I'm okay!" Anna exclaimed as she raced towards her sister balled up in the corner on the floor.
"Anna! Stay away!" Her voice dripping with panic. Spikes of ice slowly poked through the ice and began to travel outwards away from Elsa.
Anna stopped only to make her sister feel better. "It's okay. I slipped! I've always been clumsy. It wasn't wewe who hurt me. It was my own lack of balance." She gave a smile to ease her sister's pain, but Elsa'a eyes were clamped shut as she chanted over and over "Don't don't don't."
Anna wanted so much to step towards her, but she didn't want to make her sister hurt anymore than she was.
"I'll stand kwa you. I'll sit kwa you, but I won't leave you. I'll be where ever wewe want me to be. So... Where do wewe want me?"
Elsa finally stopped chanting and looked up but didn't say anything. She looked away from her again and her eyes started glistening. When she closed them one tear fell at first from her left eye, then two fell from the right one. Elsa didn't wipe them away. The ice stopped spreading.
"Where do wewe want me to be?" Anna asked again kindly.
"Here." One word, barely a whisper.
"Well, I am here. I've always been Elsa." Eirik's crazed rant came to her mind. 'You sure weren't trying to bust down her door! Just knocking on it! wewe forced her to be alone!'
Anna sat down with a feeling of utter guilt. She looked up to look at her sister and saw she was already looking back at her.
"I'm sorry A-"
"No, don't apologize, about anything. Elsa... I understand why wewe never let me in your room, au why we never got to ever play au hang out with each other now. It's just... I was young, well so were you, but I didn't know at the time! I knew there was a reason for it all, I just didn't know the reason. I wish I would've bust down your door sometimes... It wasn't so much because I was unbearably lonely myself, but because I knew wewe had to be too. I didn't want to get in trouble for breaking your door though. I didn't want to get in trouble for bothering you... I'm the one who did leave wewe alone as well." Anna looked down at her lap, her chest heavy, but also light with the weight of the truth off it, but still, it was laden with guilt.
"Oh Anna." Elsa sighed out with sympathy. The ice on the floor was evaporating away until there was nothing but the carpet floor beneath them. "You might as well know now. wewe used to know about my powers. That's why wewe had that white streak in your hair."
Anna bolted up with wonder and reached for where the streak used to be before she thawed out. She hadn't seen herself in a mirror to know it was gone now.
"Had?"
"Yes, had, it's gone now. It must have vanished when wewe came back. All the ice was melted away from wewe I guess." Elsa gave a tiny pathetic smile to cheer herself up.
"Well... How'd I get it then." Anna asked cautiously, but with enthusiasm. She didn't realize she was slowly crawling nearer to her sister.
"You were five I believe, and we slept in the same room. wewe couldn't sleep one night and so wewe kept pestering me to play with wewe and convinced me to go into the ballroom to play with my powers. Everything was going so well... Then wewe got exited and jumped from a rather tall snow hill, and I caught wewe with another snow pile, and wewe kept jumping, so I kept catching you, but then wewe started going too fast and I slipped and wewe fell and when I threw out my hand I struck wewe on your head and where I struck wewe turned white." Anna was now sitting right beside Elsa, fully indulged in the story, trying to re-remember it. She remembered being outside, and jumping onto each little snow kilima she saw. They weren't tall her memory. She never got struck in her memory, but she just felt that it was the one her sister was describing to her.
Anna's face was contorted with concentration, but Elsa thought something else of it and the room's temperature started to drop again. "I'm so sorry Anna! It was an accident!"
Anna shook herself out of her reverie, "What? I'm not mad! I just... I see what you're talking about, but it's just completely different... I can't explain it."
"The reason wewe don't remember is because Mother and Father took us to see the trolls that night. One of them removed all your memories of magic, of me hurting you. So you'd be okay."
"Wow. It all makes perfect sense now. Well, kind of... I don't see why I had to forget. Would I have died?"
"Oh Anna, please don't ask something like that! Papa didn't want to risk anything! He wanted wewe to be okay. He believed the troll to be wise! Why argue with him?"
"Well, I'll tell wewe one thing." Anna gave out a chuckle, and Elsa didn't know what to make of it, yet. "Trolls are zaidi loud, obnoxious, than wise. But, very kind."
"What are wewe talking about?"
"Well, after you... Erm... After what happened my hair became zaidi white, so Kristoff took me to see them because he knew they could help. I guess he was there when momma and papa took us that first time. The grandpa person alisema he couldn't help since the ice was in my heart, and then the whole true upendo thing came up as a way to thaw it, so we came racing here to find Hans so we could kiss and save me, but then he turned on me as we both know. So... In the end I guess I saved myself... kwa saving you."
"Oh..." Elsa looked back down and studied her hands for no reason other than to do something and avoid the awkwardness surrounding them. wewe could feel it air, wewe could actually feel it's tangibility.
"Elsa, I still upendo you. You're my big sister, and wewe always will be." Elsa looked up. "Plus, wewe kind of don't have a choice." Finally a little laugh squeezed out from her.
"Awwww. I've missed your laugh." She grabbed for her big sister's hand without pause, and when Elsa tried to take it back Anna squeezed tighter. "I'm not letting wewe go Elsa." Then Anna tugged her sister's hand and easily pulled her towards her and quickly wrapped her arms around her older sister tight. "I'm never letting wewe go." With that Elsa relaxed her tense frame and her weary muscles sighed against her skin.
"Good, wewe kind of don't have a choice." They both laughed wholeheartedly. Elsa didn't even feel cold. She actually, for the first time felt a little warm inside and so she hugged tighter which made Anna grin.
*Knock... knock knock* "My ladies? Are wewe in there? Is everything all right? chakula cha jioni, karamu is served, and the people are restless."
"Oh yeah, we're princesses." Anna joked and Elsa laughed again harder than ever before. "Well, I am anyway."
They pulled away from each other and announced, "Sorry! We're coming." Anna looked back over at Elsa. "Everything's okay." Elsa smiled warmly, but then noticed the cut on above Anna's eye. She lifted a hand up to it quickly but remembered herself before she touched it. 'What if I freeze it? Just don't touch it.'
"Does it still hurt?"
"What?" Anna lifted her hand too and actually went and touched it and grimaced when the wound stung, but it had stopped bleeding. "Now it does!" She laughed. "Does it look bad?"
"To me wewe know it looks terrible." Elsa cast her eyes down.
"Oh, what was all that talking for if you're going to be like that again! Come on." Anna got back up on her feet again and stretched out her hands to help her sister up. "It. Was. Not. Your. Fault. Silly."
She looked up and grabbed her sister's hands and Anna pulled her up again quite easily, a little too easy...
"Okay. And, what were wewe doing all these years? Cutting ice too! au are wewe just magical too?" Elsa jokingly asked.
"What do mean?" Anna's face scrunched up in confusion, and Elsa know she didn't understand just how strong she was. She lead them, arm in arm, towards the door.
"Never mind. I say we first get your cut cleaned." Elsa reached out for the doorknob since she was closest and opened the door and the sisters found three ears that were pressed up against the door. The guards jumped back to attention, their faces crimson from being caught.
"Hear anything interesting men?" Anna scoffed out, and Elsa chuckled, but quickly composed herself, but if wewe looked hard enough wewe could see that she wanted nothing zaidi than to keep laughing, her lips stitched with a smile.
"Uh-u Well,-... You're eye my lady!"
"Nice save." Anna alisema coolly with a smirk, making Elsa chuckle again.
"Go and tell everyone we'll be in the great hall shortly."
"Yes you're majesties." The three men scurried off and then fell into a formation to regain their dignity.
"Anna, you're not even really dressed for dinner." Elsa noted, as they headed off for the nearest water closet. Anna looked down at her dress. It was simple, chajio, chakula cha jioni is simple. "Why can't I just wear this?"
"It's not appropriate." Elsa stated plainly.
"Oh, and I suppose your dress is?"
Now Elsa looked down at herself and then thought about it for a moment and said, "Well, I do have cape."
"Ha ha ha h-no." The two girls giggled joyously.
"Okay, okay, I'll change too. Fair enough?"
"Very fair enough. For a sekunde there I thought wewe were going to be all Queeny and stuff. It's nice to hear wewe having fun."
"It's nice just having fun."
When they reached the water closet Elsa decided to go back and choose the dresses they'd wear for both of them from Anna's closet. "They'll be a little short for wewe wewe know since you're a little taller than me."
"It'll be fine Anna. It'll be hidden behind the table."
"Oh! That reminds me! I left my dress at that trading post! Oh, I loved that dress."
"I'll send for it tomorrow okay?"
"Yeah, okay... If he hasn't traded it all ready. A princesses dress has to worth a fortune."
"We'll find it Anna, don't worry. Now go clean up." And with that Elsa left to fetch their dresses and Anna watched her walk away for a few moments. She didn't want her to leave, but Anna turned around to open the door to the closet anyway and came over to the big bucket of water to wash the blood from her face until all wewe could see was the inch long gash and the bruises painted underneath it, when she saw it in the mirror she alisema to herself, "Well, there's no hiding this from anyone." She looked away and reached for the doorknob and thought 'They're all going to blame Elsa for this. The people don't know that I'm a klutz... Oh gods above... Please help."
She opened the door and raced back to her room. When she got to the door she took a few deep breathes to steady her then opened the door to find Elsa had already changed... into Anna's sekunde inayopendelewa dress. Elsa didn't notice Anna coming in and was admiring herself in the mirror, wondering if she was trying to much with the dress she'd chosen. She wanted her coronation dress too, but she kind of... blew it away. The dress she was wearing had a white long sleeved undershirt, it dress part was a medium blue with dhahabu trimming and green flowers decorating the torso and the bottom hem.
"Wow. wewe look great!"
"Anna!" She saw her sister's face in the mirror and blushed as she swiftly turned on her heel to face her. "Oh, you're cut looks better now that it's clean."
"Yeah, it kind of hurt to clean it though, but I'll be fine. One of these days I'll learn what balance feels like." She chuckled and that made Elsa feel so much better. Anna began walking over to her kitanda which had Elsa's pick for her on it. IT looked really familiar, but she just couldn't place it. "That's my inayopendelewa dress wewe know. I don't wear it much because I don't want to ruin it."
"Oh! I didn't know, I'm sorry, do wewe want to wear it?"
"No! wewe look better in it than I ever did!" She gave a little laugh and Elsa felt better. Then Anna finally realized why the dress on her kitanda seemed so familiar, as if she hadn't seen it in years. She picked up the dress from the kitanda and continued, "This one however is the one I wore to our parent's funeral..."
Still. The only word that comes to mind. Their blood stopped, their hearts stopped, their minds stopped.
Then Anna closed her eyes in mental anguish, hugged the dressed close imagining it was her mother, then she walked over to the open wardrobe and placed it back on the rack all the way to the left where it was out of sight and selected another dress from the middle, then quickly went back over to her bed. This one was mainly purple, and short sleeved.
She kicked off her shoes and when she went to start taking off her dress she was wearing Elsa turned around harshly, almost falling down from the force.
Anna stood there for a few moments thinking. 'Should I say something? Is SHE going to say something? She would have alisema something kwa now if she was.'
"Elsa... Elsa, it's okay." Anna turned around wearing only her undergarment dress. She walked over to her sister as it started snowing in the room. She looked up to watch them fall, then continued on to her sister. She gingerly placed a hand on Elsa's shoulder and Elsa jerked away, but only a little, so Anna walked around in front of her and enveloped her in a hug again, and the snow stopped.
"It's okay Elsa, I got you."
"Is it really? Are we ever going to be okay?" Elsa asked, her head buried in Anna's neck.
"Yes, and if I don't get dressed now, we're going to probably have a mutiny on our hands from our chajio, chakula cha jioni guests." Anna alisema trying to lighten the mood and change the subject. Elsa took the hint.
"We have the rest of our lives to talk about it." Elsa alisema lifting away and smiled at her sister.
"Yes, we do. As long as wewe don't go running away again, and make me leave another dress behind!" She laughed loudly and squeezed her sister once zaidi than bounced back over to her dress and put it on, then went to find the matching shoes when she heard a loud gasp.
"What! What is it!" She asked midway putting on her shoe, and fell again, but Elsa didn't notice.
"Mother's tiara! I just threw it away when I built my castle! I have to get it back!"
Anna got back up and went over to her sister again. "We have to go to dinner! I'm dying of starvation. We will get it back. But, not now. Just make another out of ice for now! That would be beautiful actually."
Elsa looked into her sister's eyes and saw that she wasn't going to let a crown, let alone their mother's, get in the way of going to chajio, chakula cha jioni to appease the people right now. "Right. You're right. We need to go. But, how could I just throw it away?!"
"Elsa, focus! Ice crown! Now!"
"Okay okay! Don't shout! You'll make me nervous."
"I'm sorry, I'm just so hungry." She backed away to give her sister some space and to lessen the pressure, and Elsa held out her hands. She closed her eyes and tried to remember what the tiara looked like and then her hands glowed white as an exact replica grew from them.
"You did it! It looks just like mom's! Open your eyes!"
She did, it did! She grinned wildly and marveled at it, then looked towards her sister. "Will wewe do the honor?" She held out the tiara for Anna to take.
"Really?"
"Yes, really."
Anna stepped mbele and lightly picked up the freezing tiara and Elsa bowed as Anna placed it in her head, then Elsa lifted back up still grinning, and Anna couldn't help but hug her just one zaidi time, but then yelled in Elsa's ear, "NOW CAN WE GO TO DINNER?!"
"YES!" She mockingly yelled back. They lifted away and walked briskly hand in hand to the door and Anna had them practically jogging to the grand doors of the Great Hall where chajio, chakula cha jioni was being served. The guards there were stern and hard faced at their late arrival, but the girls were covered in smiles, so the guards opened the doors without a complaint, and everyone stood up when the Queen and princess were announced as they walked in the giant room.
Then they were separated, kwa the announcer himself, to be seated at opposite ends of the table, Elsa at he head and Anna at the foot.
"Why can't we sit together?" Anna pleaded to the balding, belly-bulging, man.
"Well, if wewe were on time, maybe. But, everyone has already been seated for almost half an saa your highness."
"It'll be alright Anna. Remember, we have the rest of our lives?"
"Yeah, okay." So with that Anna forced her head up, but solemnly walked over to her kiti, kiti cha and sat down watching Elsa pass kwa to walk all the way up the fifty foot long table. Elsa smiled at her and waved, and Anna smirked a little, but ultimately waved back, and a neighboring princess from the kingdom of Fjordane began to ask what happened to her forehead where the cut was.
'Just tell the truth.'
"Elsa was trying to teach me how to ice skate, and I fell on my face." Those around close enough to hear all gasped, which gained the attention from those further away, and some looked over to where Elsa sat down, scowls laced on their faces.
"I'm alright. It probably would've still fallen on the carpet! I've never had good balance, not even for all the dancing I do! That's the only time I'm ever stable. When I'm constantly moving."
"Oh! I also upendo to dance!" The princess started, completely believing Anna, as she should, and the conversation switched just as Anna hoped, and no one ever mentioned the gash again throughout the evening.
"Goodnight your majesty." A man bowed deep in respect of Elsa, then bowed again, as Anna quickly came up from behind and looped her arm through her sister's. "Goodnight to wewe as well Princess Anna."
"Thank you." They both alisema in unison, smiling. The man lifted then turned and walked out of the hall, and the girls followed suit.
The sister's ladies in waiting were standing outside the door for the girls. When they walked through the doorway, the servants asked if there was anything they could do for them before they began to clean up dinner.
"No, no, there's nothing. Anna and I are simply going to our room and talk. It's been a very long siku after all." The servants curtsied and bade them a goodnight as well, and went in to help the servants already clearing everything away.
"Our room?" Anna asked with a goofy smiled plastered to her freckled face.
"It was ours before I had to move, and now it is ours once again."
Anna placed her head on Elsa's shoulder and Elsa lightly squeezed Anna's hand that was resting on her arm as they walked back to their room.
"Oh, but wewe only have your kitanda in there..." Elsa remembered aloud.
"That's okay. I can share."
"Yes, but so are my pajamas. I can at least go them."
"Okay."
Instead of turning left Elsa lead them to the right, towards her old room. 'My old prison.' She thought and she slowed down, but never stopped as they approached the door.
"It's okay Elsa. I'm right here with you."
"I don't want wewe to come in." Elsa spit out with mild panic.
"What? Why!?" Ana objected.
"I'll leave the door open, I just don't want wewe to come in, okay?"
"Okay... As long as the door is open then."
"It will be." Anna nodded in agreement and let go of Elsa's arm. Elsa slowly turned the doorknob around and pushed the door open, and cautiously entered the icy room. It hadn't melted like everything else. There was fear here, and it would never leave. Elsa for the first time ever felt chills violently go down her spine, she didn't want to be in there whatsoever.
Anna stayed put as promised, rubbing at her arms feeling the cold come out, but not the emotion that came with it.
Elsa pulled open a door from the side of her wardrobe and pulled out her night gown, all neatly folded. Then she opened the doors and looked for her slippers. Then with the kanzu, gown and shoes in one arm, she closed the door and swiftly quitted the room, and vowed she would never go back in there again. She'd have her things brought back into Anna's room, their room, and her old room would be nothing but a memory. Maybe make it a storage room au something, but no one was to ever live in it again.
She closed the door harshly, zaidi than she meant to, and Anna felt a little apprehension gnawing in her bones.
"Are wewe ready now?"
Elsa turned away from the door and put on a smile so big it was terribly forced, gave Anna her free arm, to which she took, and made them start walking. "Yes."
"Do wewe wanna even talk anymore? I understand if wewe don't. Sleep does sound wonderful right now actually."
"I'm up for it if wewe are!" Elsa alisema forcing the enthusiasm, trying not to say 'No, of course I don't wewe twit.'
"Okay... Then how about we simply go to bed, then tomorrow send for my dress, then we can make plans to go back and find your crown, and maybe formally introduce wewe to Kristoff too?"
"Well, wouldn't wewe make a fine queen! Plans, plans, plans!" Elsa didn't even hear the hardness of her sarcasm. She was actually trying to compliment her sister. Anna didn't hear it that way though.
"I'm sorry. What do wewe want to do then your royal pain?" Elsa stopped, and when Anna kept trying to go she ended up dragging Elsa back up with her.
"Anna, no... I didn't mean it like that. I'm not okay right now. I thought it was cute. You're the one making responsible decisions, since I'm not in the right mind to."
"Oh... Now, I really am sorry. This is going to take some getting use to for sure." The reached their door and Anna opened the door this time since she was closest, and they walked inside.
"I'll change over here in this corner and wewe can change over there, I mean if wewe want to! We can switch, au do whatever wewe want!" Anna suggested.
"No, that'll be fine." A small smile brought the corners of Elsa's lips up, and she felt her spirit lighten.
Anna went over to her wardrobe and dug around for her night gown, and when she finally found it all crumpled up in the last drawer of all six of them, Elsa was already redressed and putting her chajio, chakula cha jioni kanzu, gown and shoes back in the wardrobe.
"You change fast!"
"You don't fold your clothes."
"Touché." She giggled, and went to her corner, and Elsa turned around out of respect, and Anna tried to get dressed quickly like her sister did. When she was finished she rushed over and canon balled onto her kitanda and shouted out in excitement. Elsa jumped in a tiny fit of shock and observed, "You don't look like wewe want to sleep." Then she walked over to the empty right side of the bed, and just kind of stood there like she'd never gotten in to a kitanda before.
Anna looked over at her when she finally stopped laughing. "Well, wewe don't either your highness." She mocked the accent of the man earlier that night. "Get in!" Anna grabbed at her left for the blankets and pulled them away for her sister to get in.
"Are wewe sure wewe really want to sleep in the same kitanda as me?"
"Do wewe wanna sleep on the floor then? Because I'm not!"
"No, I'm just making sure."
"Well, I'm sure! Now come on! On wewe go!"
Elsa crawled onto the kitanda and made sure to stay as close to the edge as possible to make sure Anna had enough room,(even though it was a Queen size bed), and enough blankets, and so she could get off without disturbing Anna if needed.
"No, no, no!" Anna grabbed Elsa's shoulders and pulled her away from the edge and set her right beside her. Then she brought the blanket up to Elsa's chin and tucked it around her, pinning her there in comfort, she never put up a fight, she was to shocked. "Now, that's better." Then in all her boldness, Anna bent down and placed a sweet kiss on Elsa's forehead, then delved under the blankets and scooted up right inayofuata to her sister and rested her head against Elsa's arm.
"I upendo wewe Elsa."
Elsa was still in shock from having been moved so easily and quickly.
Anna lifted her face to look up at her older sister's face and saw Elsa's eyes wide open, boring into the ceiling, like something was scaring her into silence. "Elsa?"
"I'm fine." She turned her head to smile at her sister, to make her believe in her lie. 'Why is she so strong?'
"Right..."
"I upendo wewe too Anna." Anna squealed and pushed one arm under Elsa's neck and thew the other over her torso and hugged her hard.
"One, two, three together, clap together,-"
"Snap together... wewe still remember that after all these years?"
"You should know better!" Anna mocked at the title of their little song they made up when they were tiny children.
"I thought I had-" A long yawn escaped Elsa's lungs, "forgotten."
"Well, I'm glad wewe didn't." Anna let go of her big sister and rolled back to her side, but still faced towards Elsa. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight, my right hand." Anna giggled gladly, then nestled deep into her pillow. Elsa turned onto her side too, facing Anna, her little sister.
Anna opened an eye and saw Elsa watching her. "Are wewe going to watch me sleep or...?"
"I sleep on my right side actually. And I'm just admiring you. You've become a beautiful young woman Anna. Mother would be proud." And with that Elsa closed her eyes.
Anna kept looking at Elsa. "You're beautiful too wewe know. Mother and Father would be proud of you. For saving me and the kingdom, even if wewe did also freeze it. They'd be proud that wewe made it right again." Anna scooted closer and rested her forehead against her sister's bosom.
Elsa felt tiny pinpricks stab the tip of her nose and her vision went wet. She didn't let any tear fall though, she didn't want Anna don't think she was sad. In fact, she had never been happier. "Thank wewe Anna. Thank you." It didn't take long of sleep to take away her weary mind.
