Frozen Heart (Kristanna & Elsamaren)

Chapter 17 • Anna

I come out of the bathroom after getting myself cleaned up and walk right into Kristoff.

"Elsa and Honeymaren are in the lounge with tea," he says gently.

"Okay," I say.

"What's wrong Anna?" He asks.

"I guess I'm still just kind of emotional. I mean, she was dead, and now she's back all the sudden. I'm just a bit overwhelmed is all," I say, rubbing my temples. Kristoff puts his hands on my neck gently.

"Everything is gonna be okay now," he says, pressing our foreheads together. I put my hands on his chest and let out a breath of relief.

"I believe you," I say. I lift my head up slightly and wrap my arms around his neck as our lips meet gently. Our kisses are never anything more than that. Soft and loving. But this kiss has a different feel to it. Like a spark that starts a fire. I stand on my toes to better reach his lips and he shocks me by lowering his hands to my hips and pressing me against a wall.

"Ahem," Elsa coughs from behind Kristoff. We quickly jump apart and my face gets hot and turns red. Luckily Kristoff's face is just as red as mine.

"We um...we have tea ready," Elsa says. Her own face is slightly red. I already know she'll scold me for this later. I smooth my dress out and look at Kristoff.

"Well then let's go," I say and lace my fingers with his. We walk down the hall ahead of Elsa and I can practically see her face-palm behind us.

"Well that was embarrassing," I whisper.

"Yea, a little bit. We'll just have to be more careful the next time," he says and chuckles a bit. My heart flutters when he says the words 'next time'. But I'm a princess. I shouldn't be having those kinds of thoughts. But I also have the right to feel however I want. And what Kristoff and I do with our alone time is really no one's business.

Stop that, Anna, I tell myself, mentally hitting the side of my head.

We enter the lounge and Honeymaren is standing there, with a lovely setup for tea. The room is decorated with all kinds of flowers, and the smaller coffee table has kneeling pillows around it. There's a small dish in the center of the table with a pie in it. Man, that smells good.

"Honeymaren this is beautiful," I say.

"Thank you. I thought that maybe I could introduce you to one of our native traditions. There's some fresh lemon herb and honey in the tea. And I prepared my grandmother's special cherry pie recipe. I know it's a bit much but-"

"It's absolutely perfect, Honeymaren," Elsa butts in as she scoots past Kristoff and I into the room. She walks over to Honeymaren and stands beside her and they look at Kristoff and I expectantly. I look over at Kristoff and he has the same look as me. Are we supposed to be doing something specific right now?

"C'mon let's have tea! We've only been talking about it for three hours!" Elsa says and giggles a little bit as she kneels down on one of the cushions. Honeymaren kneels next to her and Kristoff and I go over to the table and kneel down as well. Elsa picks up the teapot and pours each of a teacup full.

"So I was thinking we could all take a walk together later. You know, show Honeymaren around Arendelle," Elsa says.

"But it's...it's the middle of winter. It's freezing out there," I say gently as I take a sip of tea. The sweet-sour combination from the honey and lemon mixes well as it reaches my stomach. The warmth from the tea spreads through my entire body and I feel a little less chilled. Good thing I didn't wash my hair or it'd be cold and wet on my neck and I'd be shivering.

"I wouldn't mind it. I grew up in the forest in the elements, so the cold doesn't bother me much anymore," Honeymaren says.

"It wouldn't bother me, of course. If you don't want to go, Honey and I could take a walk and you and Kristoff could have some alone time," Elsa says and winks at me with absolutely no subtlety.

"Elsa!" I gasp and laugh as I throw a sugar cube at her. But my cheeks are bright red, again. How can she even say that. It's not like Kristoff and I have done 'it' before. She laughs and takes a sip of her tea nonchalantly. Wait, and did she give Honeymaren a nickname?

"Okay so Honey and I will take a walk then. I want to take her to the chocolate shop in town," Elsa says. Yep, she definitely gave her a nickname.

"Oh I have another idea too. We should have a ball. You know, to celebrate the restoration of Arendelle and the fact that you're still alive Elsa," I say.

"I don't know about that Anna. I have to get Honeymaren back to the forest and...I might stay there too. It's where I belong," Elsa says, looking down guiltily at her teacup.

"What makes you say that?" I ask.

"My magic. It isn't out of place in the forest like it is here. I would fit in better. Be able to be myself," she says.

"Elsa..." I say.

"I'm sorry, Anna. But, maybe we could have a ball before I go to the forest. If I leave, you'd become queen. We could have your coronation at the ball," Elsa says.

"Me, queen? Elsa, I'm not ready," I say.

"I think you are," she says.

"No, Elsa. I'm not ready. And if you think I am, then you obviously don't understand me anymore." I stand up and smooth my dress over, leaving the room. I walk down the hall to my bedroom and sit down on the edge of the bed. I definitely cannot handle being queen. it's too much responsibility.

The bedroom door creaks open slowly and Elsa peeks in.

"Anna...listen to me please...I-"

"No, Elsa. You listen to me. I cannot handle the responsibility of being queen. Of taking care of this kingdom!" I shout.

"Yes you can. And you want to know how I know? Because you did what was right in that forest. You took charge. You're a leader," Elsa says.

"Breaking the dam would have destroyed Arendelle if you hadn't come back to save it. I made a choice that put our kingdom in peril. If not for you, it would've been obliterated! I'm not the one meant to be queen because I can't protect people. Don't force the royal duty on me because I cannot handle it," I say angrily. She begins to argue but I hold my hand up to stop her.

"Just leave me alone. Please," I say. She sighs and bows her head as she leaves the room and I see Kristoff in the doorway. Once Elsa is out he steps in an shuts the door. He comes over and sits beside me on the bed.

"I was too rude to her wasn't I...?" I ask, looking up at him sadly.

"You know I'm always on your side. And I think she's putting too much pressure on you. But, you should at least hear her out. Just wait a couple of days for both of you to stop being so angry and then we can all talk. Okay?"

"Okay..." I say. But I have no intention of talking. I can't become queen if I'm not in the kingdom. So that's exactly what I'll do.