A Snow Queen's Tale- a Frozen Fanfiction

Chapter 27: Chasing After Anna

🌨Elsa's Pov🌨
I blinked. Maybe Anna had gone downstairs for a drink of water or a midnight snack. Maybe she was with our parents, or somewhere else in the Sommerhus.
      I wouldn't be able to sleep until I knew, so I rolled out of bed and stretched. Lots of people woke up in the middle of the night, I told myself. Anna's usual way at the Sommerhus was to go bed late and wake up at the crack of dawn, but that didn't mean she couldn't break her pattern. Maybe nothing was wrong at all.
      It was possible. But I had a bad feeling.
      I ran my hands along the other side of the bed to make sure my sister wasn't huddled under the blankets. Anna wasn't there.
      I slipped out of the room. Should I wake my parents? I did not want them to worry. For now, at least, I decided to search for Anna by myself.
      I tiptoed downstairs. The glow of moonlight washed over everything, but the corners were dark and the grandfather clock cast an ominous shadow. I peered into each room, scanning for Anna. "Come out, come out, wherever you are," I whispered, but no one answered.
Would Anna have left the Sommerhus? Most kids wouldn't dare go outside at night alone, but I knew my sister. Anna was fearless and bold, a girl who wouldn't let anything get between her and her next big idea.
But why? What could Anna want outside? I had no answers, but I knew that Anna shouldn't be alone. She was too little, and it was too dark. My skin prickled with goosebumps.
I opened the door taking care not to make any noise, and propped it open with a stone so I could get back in without waking my parents. There was no need to worry them, I decided. Anna couldn't have gone very far.
Stepping outside, I crisscrossed the gardens of the Sommerhus, softly calling, "Anna? Anna? Are you out there?" But there was only silence.
When a cloud drifted over the moon, the grounds around the cottage turned pitch black. In another section of the sky, the stars still winked, so I would have to rely on their dim light to see.
I took a deep breath. Where was I going to go?
I thought again about waking my parents but decided to put it off a little longer. Any minute, I excepted to find my sister.
I walked along the edge of the gardens and spotted Anna's cloak near the hiking path. Had she worn it outside, then grown too warm? She had to be close, I thought.
Anna probably wasn't scared, but I shivered as I hurried along the path. Wasn't my father always cautioning against the dangers of the woods? My imagination ran wild. There could be animals out there, hungry and fierce. There could even be monsters.
And I knew that a person could get lost among the trees without anyone ever realizing they were there.
That was the most frightening thing, I thought—being alone. And thinking of Anna alone, in danger.
I paused for a moment to calm my racing heart, and when I stopped I remembered something: Anna might be alone, but I didn't need to be. I had magic to keep me company.
My worries made the magic difficult to manage at first. After a few misshapen lumps, though, I finally conjured something that resembled a snowball. Its cold weight in my hands felt reassuring; every time I felt a new surge of worry,
I squeezed it to relieve the pressure. Soon the snowball was dented and melting, but my spirits were restored. Anna couldn't have gone that far, I told myself. Any minute, I would find her.
As I rushed ahead, my eyes tried to take in every inch of the trail. Strangely, I was getting used to the dark, and as time went on it seemed almost like the forest was allowing me to see things I had never noticed before.
The wind had been howling, but now it tickled my nose, teasing me like a friend. Leaves rose in a gust, and it looked like they were dancing. Even the taste of the air was sharp and fresh, like lemon or mint. Was this why mother loved the outdoors so much? Maybe these natural wonders were the true treasures of the kingdom.
I was almost at the top of a hill, which ended at a bluff. I could hear the gentle lapping of water far below. Would Anna have gone down there? I panicked. Could she have been swept out to sea? I squeezed my snowball for comfort, digging my fingernails into its cold center, and then I remembered what Anna had said. The water was too cold. She wouldn't even walk into it. She wouldn't have have come this way, I thought. I could feel it in my bones.
I turned around on the trail and headed back the way I had come, relieved to sense Anna wasn't in the water but frustrated that there was still no sign of my sister. If only I had woken my parents at once! I needed help, and I was too far into the forest to turn back. For the hundredth time, I wondered what Anna was thinking. Why was she out there at all?
I was walking near the strawberry bushes, feeling my way past a row of pines, when suddenly I heard a faint voice. Was it the wind? Was it just my imagination? I wasn't sure until I finally made out the words.
"Elsa, come! I found him! I found the snow hare!"