Always You

xxiv. Visited

Anna

A knock on my door as I was settling down with a book and intense nausea interrupted my thoughts and I quickly invited the guest inside. Not to my surprise, Elsa walked in, however she was followed by Jack. This was a surprise, because I had thought Jack was going to be gone for much longer than he was. I quickly sat up, worried that something was wrong.

"Uh, hi, guys?" I asked, fear cooling the pit of my stomach as the worst possibilities ran through my mind.

"Hi, Anna," Jack was the first of the pair to speak, looking to Elsa as if to ask for her encouragement. I couldn't imagine what was happening, but my fear of an accident or danger at all was rapidly fading as I watched the two have a silent conversation with their eyes. "I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am... That I missed the wedding." Jack spoke, his blue eyes meeting mine as he gave me na apologetic smile.

"Oh! No, no, no, Jack... It's fine. I mean, I would have loved to have you there but really, it's okay. I understand that you had stuff going on, it's totally fine." I assured him, smiling in glee as I realized he was simply here to apologize. He grinned at me, his teeth sparkling like freshly fallen snow.

"Thanks, and congrats. On the wedding and the baby." He told me, his slight awkwardness always apparent. I grinned, thanking him as he left. He and Elsa smiled at each other, looks of love on their faces that warmed me to the very core to see. I picked my book back up, but I was suddenly overcome with fatigue. I flipped off the bedside lamp, falling asleep as soon as I laid down.

                                                                         ***

I woke up in the middle of the night, Kristoff having joined me at some point after I'd fallen asleep. His sleepy warmth lingered around me as I shrugged off his arm and stood up, my feet seeming to guide me somewhere I didn't even tell them to. I didn't know where I was going, but I had the sense that I really needed to be there, right now. Finally, I wound up in the library. By now I was wide awake, looking around the room lit by the pale gray of early morning and wondering what had made me desire to be here. 

"Anna," I heard an eerie whisper seeming to come from nowhere and everywhere at the same time. I looked around, certain I was the only person in the room.

"Hello?" I called out, my voice loud and sharp in the heavy quiet of the large room. I walked around some, still seeing no one. Deep down I knew I wasn't going to find anyone, but I couldn't find any logical explanation for the voice. It seemed so familiar to me, the quiet concern of the single word cutting to the quick of my spirit.

"Anna." The voice spoke again, louder this time. I gasped, my knees weakening as I placed it.

"Mom?" I called out, eyes blurring with tears as I desperately wheeled around in search of my mother. "Mommy?" I cried, reverting back to the childish nickname as my hopes irrationally raised. My parents were dead, of course they were. Their ship had never been recovered, lost at sea due to an angry and unexpected storm.

I sank to the floor, growing cold in my thin night gown as I sobbed. There wasn't another whisper, and I had no idea how long I sat there before I cried myself to sleep.

"Princess Anna?" Spoke a deep voice, shaking me lightly as I opened my eyes. I took in my surroundings; I was curled into a ball on the library floor, dried tears on my face. The events of just a few hours before came rapidly back to me, breaking my heart all over again.

"Oh. Hi." I said to my company, a man I didn't recognize. I knew he must be on the staff, but I couldn't seem to place him. "Who are you?" I asked, hoping I wasn't being rude. I thought for sure I knew all of our staff.

"I'm Theo. I'm a new chef here, I just started. I was just, erm, exploring." He spoke guiltily, as if I had scolded him.

"What time is it?" I asked him, realizing the sun was barely up.

"It's barely five in the morning. No one else is awake..." He told me.

"Okay, well. I'll leave you to your exploration... Just, please, don't tell anyone where you found me." I told him, placing my hand on my roiling stomach as I stood. He nodded quickly in agreement and I headed back towards my room. I felt like someone was watching me, as if the blue eyes of my mother were following every step I took. The feeling weighed heavy on my chest and I wasn't sure what to make of it.

Kristoff

I woke up as Anna was sliding back into the bed, trying to remain unnoticed. As much as I loved her, I knew she was too clumsy to ever do that. Muffling a chuckle, I pretended to be asleep so I didn't upset her. I really wanted to know what my sleep-loving bride was doing up at this early hour, but asking her would only lead to trouble. If she wanted me to know, she would tell me. Anna wasn't very secretive. She scooted closer to me, her small body cold under the thin nightgown. I wrapped my arm around her, careful not to press too hard on her barely growing tummy. I knew it wasn't likely to damage our baby that way, but I didn't want to take even the slightest chance.

I finally lapsed back into a shallow sleep, every noise causing my eyes to open and dart around before closing again. It wasn't a restful slumber, but having Anna snore lightly next to me made me feel as well rested as her. 

When morning finally came for the both of us and we had eaten some breakfast, we lay out in the courtyard. There was a light breeze, the air warm but with a small bite to it that seemed to taunt us with the end of summer. The vague crispness of the air hinted at fall, though summer had yet to release its warm and joyful grip on the citizens of Arendelle.

"I think we're having a boy," Anna told me, her voice dreamy as she ran her hands over her tiny stomach. I smiled at her, not willing to admit that I was near certain we were having a girl.

"What do you want to name her?" I asked, slipping in my pronoun of choice. She smirked at me, telling me without words that she noticed what I had done.

"I was thinking Christian for a boy, or Kristina for a girl." She told me. The smile on her face told me that this wasn't a recent thought of hers; she had been the type of girl who daydreamed vividly about the little toddlers she'd be carrying around even before she knew what she wanted to be when she grew up.

"You don't want to name her after your mom?" I asked her, intrigued. Most girls want to pay tribute to their mothers, dead or alive. In our case, I had thought for sure that Anna would want to name our child after her parents.

"I don't know, I mean... Maybe. I guess it depends on the moment I see him. I think that's when I'll really know." She answered, snuggling closer to my chest as a stronger gust of wind blew. Little pieces of her hair flew out of her bun and tickled the tips of her ears and tangled gently with her eyelashes. I nodded, leaning my head against hers and looking up at the clouds.

"Well, I'm happy as long as you're happy." I assured her, meaning it. The name of the baby didn't really mean the world to me... I didn't have parents to name our child after, and anything Anna chose was sure to be beautiful.

"You are just a big ball of brown-noser." She chuckled, a real smile playing on her red lips.

"Am not." I whined at her, a grin on my face.

"Are too!" She cried, sticking her tongue out childishly. I sighed happily as she laughed, wondering what could possibly make this moment any better.