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Anna sat at a padded window seat overlooking the eastern courtyard. The last several days brought a harsh blizzard to the Southern Isles and now there was a deep blanket of snow covering the grounds. The sight made her smile. It felt like a little piece of Arendelle, of home, was here with her now.
No… not home. The Southern Isles is my home now… she had to remind herself. It’s been five months since I moved here and in some ways, I’m still trying to adjust. Everything is so different.
The last week had been exceptionally difficult for her. The beginning of December reminded her of her old home traditions lost to time. Back when she was a little girl, the family would all gather outside the castle and ring an extremely old and large bell, the Yule Bell, to signal the official start to the holiday season for the kingdom. But that hadn’t happened since the gates closed. She couldn’t help but wonder if Elsa, in her solitude, would have reopened the gates just long enough for the people to see her ring that bell this year. Assuming she even closed them at all.
There were other small traditions that were now lost this year, too. With her now living with the Westergaards, there would be no chance for her to slip a homemade card and present under Elsa’s bedroom door come Christmas Eve. She debated whether or not she should mail her sister a present. Would Elsa even accept such a gift after the way they parted? They hadn’t even written to each other. Who knew how Elsa felt about her now.
“Ah, Anna! There you are!”
Hans’ merry voice from a little further down the corridor snapped her from her thoughts, and she turned around to smile at him. He must have just come back in from outside for he still donned his thick lined winter overcoat. He was the true light in her life, her savior in more ways than one. Every time she felt sad, whether it was stress from abandoning her sister or just having a rough time adjusting to the Westergaard castle, he was always there for a comforting hand, a shoulder to cry on, and so much more. She didn’t have much here in the Southern Isles, but she had him, and that was enough to keep her happy. How lucky she was to have such a charming, compassionate and handsome prince as her true love.
Anna batted her eyelashes at him sweetly. “Were you looking for me?”
“Of course I was,” he smiled and leaned down to take one of her hands. He planted a small kiss on her palm before sitting down on the window seat next to her. “What are you up to?”
She shrugged lightly and glanced back out the window. “Nothing really. Just admiring the snow…. It’s been a long time since I’ve enjoyed winter weather.”
The smile on his face widened, “then I have the perfect little surprise for you.”
“Oh?” She tilted her head curiously. His smile was contagious. She found the corners of her own mouth twisting upwards at the prospect. “I do enjoy surprises– especially if they’re yours.”
“In that case…” he stood up and grasped her hands, gently pulling her to her feet. “We should get going.”
“Where to?” She asked as he led her back through the corridors. They made a quick stop at her bedchamber so she could retrieve her warm winter cloak, mittens and boots. “Are we going for a ride??”
“No, not today.” He replied, “Kjekk and Sitron probably won’t appreciate the snow like you and I–”
“Oh! Are we going to build snowmen??” She interrupted giddily.
Hans laughed and held open the door for the southern entrance. “Better!”
“Better than snowmen??” She stopped asking questions and followed him through the narrow-cleared pathway through the grounds. She had never really ventured out this way before. Usually in her trips outside, she stayed more towards the eastern and western wings. That’s where the luscious gardens were located. Of course, being winter, there was little greenery to enjoy right now.
“Careful! It’s a bit slippery out here.” Hans gripped onto her hand tighter. Eventually, they reached the end of the cleared pathway and had to start wading through the snow until they reached their official destination. “Here we are!” He said with a grin as he gestured to the landscape before them.
Anna peered around them and gasped. There was a large frozen pond just ahead, mostly surrounded by some of the most beautiful spruce trees she had ever seen. Even better, when the sun peeked through breaks in the clouds and shined brightly on the ice, the aura gave off such a magnificent glow. As her eyes scanned over the area, she noticed a large rucksack sitting in the snow just before the ice. “What’s this?”
He grinned at her as he tugged the bag open and pulled out a feminine pair of ice skates. They were white with gold rosemaling accents along the toes and going up the front center of the skates.
“Oh Hans… these are beautiful!” she exclaimed and took one of the shoes to examine it more closely. From her vantage point, she could also see another pair still in the rucksack. Those were black with a similar gold decoration across the top. “Y-You want us to ice skate??”
“I thought it would be something fun for us. Plus… we have the entire area to ourselves. I doubt my brothers would think to come out here.”
“Thank goodness for that.” She smiled. “They have been exceptionally irritating the last few days.” Her cheeks reddened as Hans knelt in the snow before her and lifted one of her feet up to wiggle off her snow boot. She had to bend forward and lean her hands on his shoulders to keep herself upright as he laced her foot into her ice skate, then did the same for the other foot. His gloved hands had brushed along the fabric of her stockings as he worked and it brought delightful little tingles down her spine. In a way, she was almost saddened when she was officially in her skates. She would have to wait for him to switch her footwear back just to feel him touch her legs again.
He had an easier time lacing himself into his own boots, and once ready, he brushed the snow off the bottom of his coat and led her to the ice. They didn’t make it too far, though. Right before they would have stepped onto the frozen surface, Anna grinded to a halt and slipped her hand from his.
“H-Hans, wait…” She said nervously and bit her lip. “I… I don’t know how to skate.”
Hans’ eyes widened a bit as he tried his hardest not to let complete shock show across his features. “Really?? But it gets so cold in Arendelle—“
She felt rather sheepish. “Yeah… but Mama and Papa were rather… overprotective. With the gates being closed and all… I never really had the chance to go out to the mountain lakes and learn.”
“Then this is the perfect opportunity!” Hans beamed and offered his hand once more. “It’s just the two of us, so no one will be around to judge you as you try.”
Anna eyed the ice warily. “It’s not dangerous… is it?”
Hans shook his head. “Only if you fall. But that won’t happen. I’m here to hold you steady.”
That brought a small smile to her lips. “You always do.” She hesitated for a moment before taking his hand and making the smallest of baby steps onto the ice. Almost immediately, she could feel her legs start to wobble. Before her body could really start to sway in one direction, Hans’ strong arm wrapped around her waist and held her close to his side.
“Remember how we spent most of your sister’s coronation sock sliding around your castle? It’s kind of like that. But with a blade under your boot.” He chuckled awkwardly and repositioned her back to the edge of the snow. “Here, you can watch me, then we’ll try together.”
“O-Okay…” she tucked her mitten-clad hands up under her cloak and watched Hans glide easily across the pond. His movements were so smooth and effortless. She just knew that as soon as she tried the same thing she’d end up in a crumpled heap on the ground. Still, despite her terrible clumsiness, she was determined to try. Hans went through a lot of trouble to get them matching skates and to arrange a private little excursion out here. And how wonderful it would be to be able to glide around the pond, hand in hand, and let loose and have fun!
“What do you think?” Hans asked as he came to a stop in front of her. “Ready to stretch your legs?”
“Only if you promise to catch me.”
Hans chuckled again, “I promise on my honor as both a gentleman and a fiancé, I will not let you fall.”
Anna nodded and took his awaiting arm and moved slowly back onto the ice. “O-okay, what first?”
“Just do what I do.”
Her heart thumped hard in her chest as she slowly lifted her left leg as Hans raised his, and together they pushed off deeper into the pond. Her grip on his arm tightened the further out they went until they started to lose speed. “Now what?”
“We do it again. Use the other foot. Remember, it’s like sliding across the floor.”
Anna glanced down at her feet and carefully kicked off again at the same time that Hans did. The motion was simple and went smoothly enough. She let out a sigh of relief and glanced up to Hans. He was smiling down at her excitedly. It made her smile too. Maybe she could do this after all!
“Can we go faster?” She asked and gave his arm a playful squeeze.
“We can go as fast as you’d like.”
She let out a pitched giggle and started to pick up her pace. After a few more strides, she closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. The wind hitting her face was cold, but it didn’t bother her one bit. Inside, she felt nothing but the warmth of Hans’ body beside hers and the comfort of his arms around her waist. With a heart so full, she could think of little else that would make her any more content.
“Anna…” Hans murmured to her after a few more minutes of faster pacing, “we should probably slow down some. There’s a curve coming up.”
She heard his voice, but the words didn’t register. She was still basking in how happy she was for getting some quality alone time with Hans and for him teaching her something new. Any and every time the two of them tried to do something on their own, there was always someone–usually at least one of his brothers on hand to ruin it somehow… or worse, Miss Lilith, a local woman brought to the castle to help care for her, would insist on becoming an acting chaperone and would barely let the pair brush shoulders as they walked together. But not here. It was just the two of them, and they could be as silly and carefree as they wanted.
When she finally did open her eyes and look out where she was going, it suddenly dawned on her that he tried to tell her something. “O-oh! Right.” She giggled sheepishly and tried not to let her cheeks flush any pinker than they already were. At least the cold helped hide her embarrassment as she stopped fueling their speed. “So what do we do? How do we stop?”
“Turn your feet like so…” he tried to demonstrate for her so she could follow suit, “…that’s it. Then you put just a little bit of–” his gaze snapped up from their feet in just the nick of time. They were still going too fast to be able to stop in time, so he did the only thing he could think of at the last minute. “Hold on!” He said and held onto her fast as they hit the edge of the ice and went tumbling into the snow.
Anna barely registered what happened. One minute she was watching his feet and trying to mimic a new stance, the next he had completely snatched her up around the waist as they went off the ice. She was the first one to fly into the air, and the next thing she knew she was twisted around in time to crash into Hans’ chest as he landed on his back in the snow.
Once the shock wore off, she flattened her palms against his chest and pushed up on him. His arms were still holding her tight so she couldn’t move very far, but it was enough to get a good look at his face. He had an equally dazed expression on his face as the impact wore off. Their eyes soon met, their gazes both asking the unspoken ‘are you alright??’ to each other. And they burst into fits of laughter.
“Um… oops?” She giggled sheepishly. “Perhaps for my first time, that was a liiiiiiiitle too fast.”
“Perhaps…”
“…I just couldn’t help myself!” She exclaimed excitedly and tried to brush some snow out of his hair; an act that would be a bit futile since his head was still laying in the powder. “That was probably the most fun I’ve had in weeks! I mean, just the thrill of…” the words just tumbled out of her mouth all at once, everything ranging from her surprised levels of balance to how easy it seemed to glide about to how she felt being guided by his arms. Her babbles then transitioned to him and his skills, and were the only silenced when he pushed up off the snow and claimed her lips with his own.
Anna squeaked at the sudden contact. Being outside, his lips were cold and slightly chapped, but so were hers, and together they became warm as they moved against each other. It started very chaste, slow and gentle, until his hands slid up her back to push her further down on top of him, effectively closing the small gap she made earlier. She responded in kind, shifting her hands to cup at his cheeks and pushing his head back into the snow. Her heart thumped harder in her chest as the kiss deepened, his mouth exploring hers. She savored the taste of him, never having been kissed like this before. It was always light kisses on her hands or sometimes a peck on the cheek. But this was something else entirely! Tingles were shooting down her spine from the levels of desire and affection he was bestowing on her. Today was certainly one for new experiences and she was all for it! What else would he show her? How much further would this surprise intimacy take them?
Unfortunately, she didn’t have long to wonder. He seemed to be running out of steam. She moaned in protest as his movements slowed down, and his lips tugged gently on hers as he eventually broke away from her. “W-wow…” Anna was left breathless. “That was… woah.”
Her flabbergasted reaction made him chuckle. “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that.” He murmured softly and gazed up at her adoringly as a gloved finger stroked her cheek.
Anna was certain her face was redder than her hair. “Well… why’d you wait so long?” She asked.
He shrugged lightly. “Because I was afraid you’d think me the same as my brothers… savage and uncivilized—”
“–YOU?? Never!”
“–I also didn’t want them watching. Intimacy is a private business, after all.”
Anna tilted her head with a curious expression forming across her face. “Is that the real reason why you dragged me out here? For a kiss?”
“Oh yes.” he teased, “the skating was all a ruse.”
She bit her lip and glanced back behind her to where their legs were somewhat tangled together. His black skates stood out boldly against the white snow. “Well, ruse or no ruse, I enjoyed the lesson! Really!! In fact, I loved it just as much as that kiss!”
“Oh?” He asked, propping himself up on his elbows. “So you’d like me to continue teaching you?”
Anna nodded enthusiastically. “Yes please.” She gently bit down on the corner of her lip. “A-and more kisses, too.” She said shyly. “I wouldn’t mind all of our lessons ending like this.”
His mouth twisted into a sly grin. “Well, I’d like to hope that they wouldn’t.” When her face became a bit crestfallen, he immediately clarified, “sometimes, it’ll be you with your back in the snow and me pinning you there.”
“Well! That’s not very gentlemanly!”
“Neither was that kiss,” He tilted his head to one side, “and yet you thoroughly enjoyed it.”
“I really did.” There was no shame in admitting it, especially since she knew he did too. She could tell he wanted to get back on his feet, so she slid off of him and kneeled in the snow. “You left me craving more…”
“Can’t get enough of me, hmm?”
She giggled in response. “Nope. I tasted bliss.”
“If you thought that was blissful, just wait until we’re properly married…” He teased as he got up and started brushing off the packed clumps of snow from his coat. “But for now, I’m rather eager to get back to our skating lesson before we lose the daylight.”
She smiled and nodded, and once he offered an outstretched hand to help her up, she immediately latched onto it. What she didn’t expect was for him to hoist her up all on his own. She squealed in delight as she collided with his chest. Almost immediately, her hands slid up his coat to loop around his neck while his arm snaked around her waist to hold her there. When she managed to get a look at his face, her cheeks flushed all over again. There was a lovestruck gleam in his eyes just like before and it made her heart race. Was he going to kiss her again after all? Oh, she hoped so. This was a new playful side of Hans that she never got a chance to see around others, and she knew once they were back in the castle that he would have to go back to courting her properly and behaving himself. While she adored her fiancé for being a proper gentleman, this mildly naughty behavior brought a new thrilling element to their relationship.
Her fingertips buried themselves in his hair and she batted her eyelashes at him sweetly to entice him into another kiss. It took a few seconds, but then the corner of his mouth twisted upwards as he lowered his head down to hers. She immediately grew giddy with anticipation and as his lips grew closer to hers, she closed her eyes and—
“Princess Anna???” Miss Lilith’s distant voice called out suddenly. “Are you out here?”
The magical moment now ruined, Anna’s eyes snapped open and she pulled her head back, turning towards the direction of the castle. Hans, too, was equally put off, letting out a frustrated groan at the untimely interruption.
“Milady!! It’s time to dress for the concert!”
“Oh. Right…” Hans cleared his throat and touched his head against hers. “I forgot all about that.”
“Me too…” Anna admitted sheepishly. The performance in the capital’s grand concert hall was something she truly was looking forward to, even if she had to spend the evening with most of Hans’ brothers. “Do you think she would bother to come out all this way looking for me?”
“Unfortunately, the fact that we can hear her means she’s probably following our footprints through the path. If she really is coming, she’ll be upon us in a few minutes.” Reluctantly, Hans pulled his arm away from her and took her hand to lead her back to where their discarded winter boots lay. “There’s always tomorrow…”
She clung to his shoulders once more as he knelt down and undid the laces on her skate. “Really?” Her eyes lit up in excitement at the prospect. “M-maybe we could come out here early!” She gasped, “we can pack a picnic basket with sandwiches and snacks, and skate around…and play in the snow,“ she couldn’t resist adding with a slight giggle in her voice.
“–and when we have enough out here, we can go back inside…” he finished for her, “… and get warmed up with some steaming mugs of cocoa in the library. There’s that tucked away corner with the sofa and blankets–”
“Oh Hans… that sounds wonderful.”
Hans grinned up at her as he pulled off her other skate. “It’s a date.”