Chapter Text
The morning began ordinarily enough that Anna would later struggle to remember anything about it that might have been a warning.
Sunlight had already reached the floor of her bedroom by the time she opened her eyes, slipping through the curtains in pale strips and warming the wooden boards. She remained beneath the blankets for a while, staring sleepily at the ceiling as the castle gradually woke around her. There were footsteps in the corridor, the distant sound of a door opening, quiet voices that disappeared almost as quickly as they came.
Anna stretched beneath the covers and yawned.
She had nowhere particularly important to be.
That was one of the things she still enjoyed about being a princess. Elsa had more than enough responsibilities for both of them, and Anna was perfectly happy to leave the tedious parts of royal life to her whenever she could.
Eventually, though, she forced herself out of bed.
Getting dressed took longer than necessary. She changed her mind twice before settling on a simple dress, then stood in front of the mirror trying to decide whether her hair needed doing properly or whether she could get away with leaving it as it was.
She could.
Probably.
Anna hurried downstairs a little later, following the smell of breakfast toward the dining room. Elsa was already seated at the table, a cup of tea beside her and several documents arranged in neat stacks.
Anna stopped in the doorway and looked at the papers.
“How long have you been awake?”
Elsa glanced up, the faintest smile appearing at the corner of her mouth. “Long enough.”
“That isn't an answer.”
“It is the answer you're getting.”
Anna dropped into the chair opposite her and reached immediately for a piece of bread. “What are you working on?”
“Trade reports.”
Anna's expression fell. “That's horrible.”
“I happen to enjoy it.”
“You enjoy everything that's boring.”
“Someone has to.”
Anna took a bite, considering this. “Kristoff is meeting me in town.”
“I know.”
Anna paused. “You know?”
“You told me yesterday.”
“Oh.”
She continued eating, though Elsa was watching her over the edge of her cup.
“You seem tired.”
Anna looked up. “I just woke up.”
“That doesn't explain why you nearly fell asleep sitting down.”
“I did not.”
“You did.”
Anna pointed at her with the piece of bread. “You're becoming very judgmental now that you're queen.”
Elsa raised an eyebrow. “I've always been judgmental.”
Anna stared at her for a moment before laughing. “Fair.”
The conversation moved on as easily as it had begun. Elsa mentioned something about a meeting later that afternoon. Anna complained about a letter she had been forced to read the previous day and then forgot what she had been complaining about halfway through explaining it.
Nothing felt wrong.
When breakfast was finished, Anna stood and smoothed her dress.
“I'll be back for lunch.”
Elsa nodded, returning to her papers. “Try not to let Kristoff convince you to climb anything.”
Anna paused at the doorway. “That happened once.”
“Twice.”
“The second time was technically Sven's fault.”
Elsa looked up at her with an expression that said she wasn't going to argue.
Anna smiled and crossed the room to kiss her cheek. “See you later.”
“See you later.”
Outside, the morning air was cool enough that Anna drew a deeper breath than usual. It felt good against her skin.
For some reason, though, she felt warmer than she expected.
She tugged lightly at the collar of her dress.
Probably just the walk.
Nothing more.
~~
Kristoff was waiting near the market with Sven when Anna arrived.
The reindeer had his head buried suspiciously close to a basket of vegetables, while Kristoff was attempting to pull him away without making too much of a scene.
“Kristoff!”
He turned at the sound of her voice, and his expression brightened immediately.
“There you are.”
Anna walked straight into him, wrapping her arms around his waist before he had time to say anything else. “Hi.”
“Hi.” His arms came around her, and he gave her a brief squeeze before looking down at her. “You've been up long?”
“Not really.”
“You look sleepy.”
Anna pulled back and narrowed her eyes at him. “Elsa said the same thing.”
“Maybe Elsa's right.”
“Don't encourage her.”
Kristoff laughed, and Anna immediately turned her attention toward Sven, who had apparently decided he had been ignored for long enough. She slipped an arm around his neck and scratched behind his ears.
“Hello to you too.”
Sven leaned heavily against her.
Anna smiled. “Did you miss me?”
The reindeer made a pleased sound.
“I knew it.”
Kristoff shook his head as they started walking through the market.
The morning passed easily. Anna stopped at several stalls, examined things she didn't need, bought one thing she definitely didn't need, and then found another thing she insisted she had absolutely needed all along.
Kristoff carried everything.
At one point, she slowed beside a fruit stall, lifting her face slightly as the sun came through the gap between the buildings.
The warmth seemed stronger than it had earlier.
She tugged at the collar of her dress.
Kristoff noticed immediately. “Too warm?”
“A little.”
He glanced toward the sky. “It's not that warm.”
“I know.”
She laughed and shook her head. “Maybe I'm just getting soft.”
“You?”
Anna gave him an offended look. “I'm the princess.”
“That doesn't answer the question.”
She nudged him with her shoulder, and they continued walking.
A few minutes later, Kristoff noticed her rubbing her hands together.
“Now you're cold?”
Anna looked down at her fingers. “Apparently.”
He reached for one of her hands and frowned when he felt the warmth in her skin.
“You're hot.”
“Am I?”
“A little.”
Anna flexed her fingers and shrugged. “I feel fine.”
Kristoff gave her a skeptical look.
She smiled and slipped her arm through his. “You worry too much.”
“Someone has to.”
“Elsa already does that.”
“Then there's no shortage.”
Anna laughed and leaned against him as they walked.
By the time Anna and Kristoff returned to the castle, the morning had passed quickly.
Anna had spent most of the walk back talking about something she'd seen in one of the market stalls, occasionally stopping to point something out to Kristoff even though they were already halfway past it. He had listened patiently, carrying the things she'd bought and occasionally reminding her that she had no idea where she was going to put any of them.
They reached the dining room just as Elsa was finishing a conversation with one of the servants.
“There you are.” Elsa glanced between them. “I was beginning to think the market had swallowed you.”
“It nearly did,” Anna said, taking her usual seat. “There was this amazing fabric stall, and then there were these little wooden figures, and then Kristoff said I didn't need another one.”
“You don't.”
Anna looked at him.
“You're supposed to support me.”
“I support you. I don't support filling your room with things you don't need.”
Elsa smiled as she sat down. “He's learning.”
Anna gave them both an offended look before reaching for the food.
Lunch was simple, comfortable, and unhurried. Elsa talked about the work she still needed to finish that afternoon, while Anna complained about how many letters apparently needed her sister's attention just because she happened to be queen.
“That's what happens when you're queen,” Elsa said, calmly cutting into her meal.
“Then I'm very glad I'm not one.”
“You say that now.”
“I'll say it tomorrow too.”
Kristoff laughed quietly beside her.
Anna smiled, but a few minutes later her expression changed.
The warmth she'd noticed in town had returned.
It was stronger now.
She shifted in her chair and tugged lightly at the collar of her dress.
Elsa noticed almost immediately. “Anna?”
“Hmm?”
“You're doing that again.”
Anna looked down at her hands. “Doing what?”
“Fidgeting.”
“I always fidget.”
“Not like that.”
Kristoff glanced over at her. “You're warm again?”
Anna hesitated.
“A little.”
Elsa reached for the back of her hand, touching Anna's forehead with her fingers. Her brows drew together slightly.
“You feel warm.”
Anna gave her a small smile. “It's probably nothing.”
“You said you felt fine this morning.”
“I do feel fine.”
Kristoff leaned back in his chair, watching her carefully. “You keep saying that.”
Anna rolled her eyes. “Because everyone keeps asking.”
She reached for her glass and drank the rest of her water.
For a moment, the heat seemed to ease.
Then a faint shiver moved across her shoulders.
She rubbed them with both hands.
Elsa noticed that too.
“Perhaps you should rest this afternoon.”
Anna looked toward her sister.
“I was planning to.”
Kristoff's expression softened. “Want me to stay?”
Anna shook her head.
“You've got things to do.”
“I can stay.”
“You'll get bored.”
“I won't.”
“You will.”
He considered arguing, then smiled. “Probably.”
Anna reached across the table and squeezed his hand.
“I'll be fine.”
Kristoff looked at her for a moment, clearly unconvinced, but he squeezed her hand back.
“All right.”
After lunch, they walked together through the castle corridor toward the entrance.
Anna stopped near the stairs.
“I think I'm going to lie down for a little while.”
Kristoff nodded. “I'll come back later.”
“You don't have to.”
“I know.”
Anna smiled.
He leaned down and kissed her forehead.
“Later.”
“Later.”
Kristoff headed toward the entrance, while Anna remained at the bottom of the stairs for a moment.
The castle was quiet around her.
She suddenly felt very warm again.
Anna took a slow breath and started upstairs.
Anna made it halfway down the corridor before the heat became unbearable.
She slowed, pressing one hand against the wall as she walked. Her skin felt strangely hot, almost feverish, and there was an uncomfortable pressure building behind her eyes.
She should probably lie down.
That was all.
She was tired. Perhaps she'd caught whatever had been going around the castle. It wasn't unusual to feel unwell now and then.
By the time she reached her bedroom, though, she was already sweating.
Anna closed the door behind herself and leaned against it for a moment.
“Too warm.”
She pulled at the collar of her dress and crossed toward the window. As soon as she opened it, cool air rushed into the room and brushed against her face.
The relief was immediate.
Anna sighed and closed her eyes.
Much better.
She stayed there for a few seconds before noticing something strange in her hands.
A faint prickling had started in her fingertips.
She looked down and flexed them.
The sensation remained.
Anna rubbed her thumb against her fingers, trying to make it disappear. Instead, the tingling seemed to spread across her palms.
“What is that?”
She shook her hands.
It didn't help.
A sudden chill ran through her body.
Anna's shoulders jerked, and she wrapped her arms around herself.
“Okay.”
She glanced toward the open window.
Maybe she'd let too much cold air in.
She closed it and turned toward the bed.
Another wave of heat rolled through her.
Anna stopped.
She was sweating again.
She reached for the blanket, then hesitated.
A moment later, the cold returned.
Her teeth clicked together.
“Oh, come on.”
She pulled the blanket around her shoulders and sat on the edge of the bed.
Her head had begun to ache.
Not badly.
Just enough to make her feel uncomfortable.
She pressed her fingers against her temple and waited.
The tingling in her hands became stronger.
Her fingers felt numb.
She flexed them repeatedly, then rubbed them together.
Nothing helped.
Anna frowned.
She didn't like this.
She pushed herself to her feet.
The room tilted.
Her hand shot out and caught the bedpost.
She stood there, breathing slowly until the dizziness eased.
“Okay.”
She waited another moment.
Then she tried to take a step.
Her legs felt strangely heavy.
She reached for the bed.
Her knees suddenly gave way.
Anna hit the floor hard enough to knock the breath out of herself.
For a few seconds she remained completely still.
Then she drew a shaky breath and pushed herself up.
Her arms trembled beneath her.
She tried to reach the bed, grasping the blanket.
Her hand slipped against the carpet.
“No.”
Anna swallowed and tried again.
Nothing.
Her body felt wrong.
Her fingers were prickling badly now, the sensation crawling up her wrists and into her arms. Her feet weren't much better. Every movement seemed to make the tingling sharper.
She rolled onto her side and pulled the blanket around herself.
She was freezing.
Then she was burning.
She threw the blanket away.
A few seconds later, she dragged it back.
“I can't get comfortable.”
Her voice sounded strange to her own ears.
She shifted again, trying to find a position that didn't make her skin crawl.
Nothing helped.
Her heart was beating too quickly.
Anna placed a hand against her chest.
“Slow down.”
It didn't listen.
She closed her eyes.
Maybe she just needed to sleep.
She could tell Elsa.
She could tell Kristoff.
Later.
Once she could stand.
Anna tried to push herself up again.
Her arms shook violently.
She made it onto her knees before dizziness swept through her again.
She fell back onto the floor.
This time, she didn't immediately try again.
She stared toward the door.
It wasn't very far away.
She could crawl.
Anna placed both hands against the carpet and pulled herself forward.
One hand.
Then the other.
Her breathing became heavier.
Another wave of heat washed through her.
She stopped, sweating.
Then the cold came.
She began to shiver.
The blanket had been left several feet behind her.
Anna looked at it.
She didn't have the strength to reach it.
Her eyes burned.
She swallowed hard.
“Kristoff?”
The word barely carried.
She waited.
Nothing.
He had gone home.
Elsa was probably still downstairs.
Anna tried again.
“Kristoff?”
Still nothing.
Her breathing became uneven.
She knew she was being ridiculous.
Someone would come eventually.
She just needed to wait.
But the room was becoming strangely quiet.
The familiar sounds of the castle seemed distant.
Anna looked toward the door again.
She suddenly remembered another time she'd been alone.
Snow beneath her feet.
The wind against her face.
The horrible cold spreading through her body.
Elsa crying.
Her heart slowing.
Her body turning to ice.
Anna squeezed her eyes shut.
“No.”
She forced herself to breathe.
“This isn't happening.”
Her voice trembled.
She opened her eyes.
She was still on the floor.
Still alone.
And she was beginning to feel genuinely afraid.
Anna reached toward the door again, but her arm gave out.
She rested her cheek against the carpet.
“Someone...”
Her voice broke.
She swallowed and tried once more.
“Please.”
Nothing answered.
She curled in on herself, shivering beneath the fever, and waited.
~~
Dinner had already been served by the time Elsa noticed the empty chair.
She had been listening to one of the servants explain something about the arrangements for the following morning when her eyes drifted toward Anna's place at the table. The chair was still empty, and the plate in front of it had never been touched.
“Has anyone seen Anna?” Elsa asked, glancing around the table.
Kristoff looked up from his meal. “She went upstairs after lunch.”
Elsa frowned slightly. “She wasn't feeling well.”
“She said she was tired.” Kristoff set his fork down, remembering the warmth he'd felt against Anna's forehead earlier. “She told me she was fine.”
Elsa's expression tightened.
“She told me the same thing.”
They looked at each other for a moment.
Neither of them said anything else.
Elsa pushed her chair back. “I'll check on her.”
Kristoff was already standing. “I'll come with you.”
They made their way upstairs quickly, the quiet of the castle becoming more noticeable with every step. When they reached Anna's door, Elsa knocked gently.
“Anna?”
There was no response.
She waited a moment before knocking again, this time a little louder. “Anna?”
Nothing.
Kristoff glanced at Elsa. “Maybe she's asleep.”
“Maybe.”
But Elsa didn't sound convinced.
She tried the handle.
The door opened.
“Anna?”
Kristoff stepped inside first, his eyes moving over the room. The bed was untouched. The curtains were partly drawn, and the window had been closed again. For a moment, there was no sign of her.
Then he looked down.
His entire expression changed.
Anna was lying on the floor beside the bed.
“Anna.”
Kristoff dropped to his knees beside her, one hand immediately reaching for her shoulder. He carefully turned her onto her back, his heart hammering when she barely reacted.
“Anna, can you hear me?”
Her eyelids fluttered.
“Kristoff?”
“I'm here.” He brushed the damp hair away from her forehead, then stopped when he felt the heat coming from her skin. “You're burning.”
Anna swallowed, her lips dry and trembling. “I know.”
He reached for her hand.
It was freezing.
His brow furrowed as he looked between her face and her fingers. “What happened?”
“I don't know.” Anna's voice was weak enough that he had to lean closer to hear her.
“Did you fall?”
She shook her head.
“I tried to get up.”
Kristoff glanced toward the bed. “How long have you been down here?”
Anna stared at him for several seconds, trying to piece the answer together. Her brow furrowed.
“I don't know.”
Something twisted painfully in his chest.
He slipped one arm beneath her knees and another behind her back. “All right. I've got you.”
He lifted her carefully.
Anna immediately clung to him, her fingers catching weakly in the front of his shirt.
“I couldn't get to the door,” she whispered.
“I know.”
“I called.”
Kristoff tightened his arms around her. “I know.”
“No one heard me.”
His jaw tightened, but he kept his voice gentle. “I'm here now.”
Anna's eyes filled with tears.
“I was scared.”
Kristoff looked down at her, his expression softening immediately. “I know.”
Elsa had already moved toward the bed and pulled the blankets back.
“Bring her here.”
Kristoff carried Anna across the room and lowered her onto the mattress as carefully as he could. She immediately curled onto her side, pulling the blanket toward herself.
Elsa sat beside her and reached for her hand.
“Anna.”
Anna opened her eyes.
“I'm sorry.”
“You don't have to apologize.” Elsa brushed her thumb gently over Anna's knuckles. “You were sick.”
“I didn't know what was happening.”
“I know.”
Elsa glanced toward Kristoff, then toward the door. “We'll get the healers.”
They arrived within minutes.
Anna endured the examination with growing impatience, too exhausted to properly protest when they asked her questions or checked her temperature again.
One of the healers frowned at the thermometer.
“Her fever is quite high.”
Elsa's eyes immediately went to Anna.
“How high?”
The healer gave her the number.
Elsa's face tightened.
Anna noticed and tried to smile. “Don't look like that.”
Elsa sat back down beside her. “Like what?”
“Like something terrible happened.”
Elsa gently moved a damp strand of hair away from Anna's face. “You were found on the floor.”
“I know.”
“You were there alone.”
Anna's expression fell.
“I didn't mean to be.”
Kristoff sat down on the other side of the bed. “We know.”
Another wave of heat passed through Anna.
She pushed the blanket away with one hand.
“Too hot.”
Kristoff pulled it down slightly.
For a few seconds, Anna seemed relieved.
Then she began to shiver.
“Cold.”
He looked at Elsa.
Elsa reached for another blanket.
Kristoff pulled it over Anna's shoulders.
Anna curled into it, but the relief lasted only a moment before she began shifting again.
She moved her legs, then her arms, then pulled one hand out from underneath the blanket and flexed her fingers repeatedly.
Kristoff noticed.
“Still tingling?”
Anna looked down at her hand.
“It won't stop.”
He took her fingers gently between his own and began rubbing them.
“Like this?”
She nodded.
“A little.”
He continued, slowly warming her hands.
Anna shifted again.
“This isn't helping.”
“What do you need?”
“I don't know.”
She sounded frustrated now, close to tears. “I can't get comfortable.”
Kristoff adjusted the pillow behind her head.
Kristoff adjusted the pillow beneath Anna's head, trying to find a position that might make her more comfortable.
“Here?”
Anna shifted slightly against it, her face tightening.
“No.”
He lifted it again and tried a different angle. “Here?”
She hesitated, then gave the smallest nod. “Maybe.”
“Maybe will have to do.”
The attempt at humor earned him the faintest twitch of a smile, but Anna's eyes closed almost immediately afterward. Her brow remained furrowed, and she continued shifting beneath the blankets as though she couldn't quite settle anywhere.
Elsa watched her for a moment before gently brushing her thumb over the back of Anna's hand.
“Does anything hurt?”
“My head.” Anna's voice was quiet, almost slurred with exhaustion.
“Anything else?”
Anna thought about it. Her legs felt heavy and strangely uncomfortable, as though she couldn't quite tell where to put them. She rubbed one against the other beneath the blanket before answering.
“My legs.”
She shifted again, pulling one knee toward herself.
“And everything feels strange.”
Elsa's fingers tightened slightly around hers. “Strange how?”
Anna frowned, searching for a way to describe it. The words seemed difficult to find.
“I don't know. Like...” She swallowed and flexed her fingers against the blanket. The prickling was still there, crawling beneath her skin. “Like I can't get comfortable inside myself.”
Elsa went quiet.
Kristoff looked at Anna for a moment, then gently squeezed her other hand.
“You don't have to explain it.”
Anna gave a faint nod.
Another cold flash swept through her.
She shuddered beneath the blankets, her shoulders trembling as she instinctively curled inward.
Kristoff immediately pulled the blankets closer around her. “I've got you.”
Anna opened her eyes again.
“Don't leave.”
“I won't.” He said it without hesitation, his hand remaining wrapped around hers.
Anna looked toward Elsa.
Elsa gave her hand another gentle squeeze. “Neither will I.”
Something in Anna's expression softened.
Her eyes closed again, and this time she didn't try to fight the exhaustion pulling her under. Her breathing gradually slowed, though every so often a shiver passed through her body or she shifted restlessly against the sheets.
Eventually, she fell into a shallow, feverish sleep.
One hand remained wrapped around Kristoff's fingers.
The other stayed tucked safely in Elsa's.
Neither of them left.
Outside, evening settled quietly over Arendelle. The last light faded from the windows, and the sounds of the castle gradually disappeared as the servants finished their work for the night.
Beside Anna's bed, a calendar lay open on her desk.
Neither Elsa nor Kristoff had given the date any thought.
Not yet.
They didn't know that exactly one year earlier, at almost this very hour, Anna had been standing alone in the snow with her heart slowly turning to ice.
They didn't know that her body remembered.
All they knew was that Anna had suddenly become terribly sick.
And neither of them had any idea why.
~~
Morning came slowly to Anna's room.
The fever had eased somewhat during the night, though it hadn't disappeared completely. Anna was still restless beneath the blankets, occasionally shivering despite the warmth of the room. Kristoff had eventually fallen asleep in the chair beside her bed, his head resting awkwardly against the backrest, while Elsa had remained awake for as long as she could.
Eventually, though, she had been forced to return to her own room.
There were still duties waiting for her.
She had tried to ignore them. She had even convinced herself that she could stay with Anna until morning and deal with everything afterward, but the longer the night stretched on, the more she remembered the reports waiting on her desk, the meetings she couldn't simply abandon, and all the things that came with being queen.
None of it mattered more than Anna.
But some of it still needed to be done.
Before leaving, Elsa had made Kristoff promise to wake her if Anna's condition changed.
Now, with the first light of morning slipping through the curtains, a soft knock came at the door.
Kristoff stirred but didn't wake immediately.
The door opened.
Olaf poked his head inside.
“Good morning!”
Kristoff startled awake and immediately looked toward Anna.
Olaf lowered his voice.
“Oh. Sorry.”
He shuffled quietly into the room, although his idea of being quiet was questionable at best.
“I came to see Anna.” He smiled as he approached the bed. “Elsa told me she was feeling under the weather.”
Kristoff rubbed a hand over his face, still half asleep.
“That's one way of putting it.”
Olaf looked at Anna.
Her face was still flushed, her hair slightly damp against her forehead as she slept.
His smile faded.
“Oh.”
He glanced back at Kristoff.
“She looks very under the weather.”
“She had a rough night.”
Olaf nodded solemnly.
“I brought her something.”
He reached behind his back and produced a small bouquet of flowers.
Kristoff stared at them.
“Where did you get those?”
“The garden.”
“You picked Elsa's flowers?”
Olaf looked pleased with himself. “I asked permission.”
Kristoff raised an eyebrow.
Olaf thought about it.
“I asked one of the gardeners.”
“And?”
“He said, ‘Please stop picking the flowers.’”
Olaf nodded as though this settled everything.
“So I assumed I had picked enough.”
Despite how exhausted he was, Kristoff couldn't help the small laugh that escaped him.
Olaf carefully placed the flowers on the bedside table.
“I thought they might make Anna feel better.”
Anna stirred beneath the blankets.
Her eyes opened slowly.
“Olaf?”
His face brightened immediately.
“Anna!”
He leaned closer, though he remembered to keep his voice down this time.
“I heard you were under the weather.”
Anna blinked at him sleepily.
“I don't think that's what Elsa meant.”
Olaf paused.
“No?”
Anna gave the smallest shake of her head before letting her eyes close again.
Olaf looked toward Kristoff.
“Is she going to be okay?”
Kristoff's expression softened as he looked down at her.
“We think so.”
Olaf nodded, though he still looked worried.
“Okay.”
He pulled a chair closer to the bed and sat down.
Kristoff watched him.
“What are you doing?”
“Keeping her company.”
“You don't have to.”
“I know.”
Olaf folded his hands in his lap and looked at Anna.
“But she looks lonely.”
Kristoff glanced at Anna.
Then at Olaf.
He couldn't really argue with that.
Olaf smiled faintly.
“I can tell her stories.”
Kristoff leaned back in his chair, exhaustion catching up with him again.
“Just maybe not the one about the reindeer who ate the entire Christmas tree.”
Olaf looked offended.
“That was a very good story.”
“It was twelve minutes long.”
“It was a complicated tree.”
A quiet laugh escaped Kristoff.
The room settled again after that.
Anna slept.
Olaf sat beside her, watching over her with unusual patience.
And for the first time since the previous afternoon, Kristoff allowed himself to close his eyes again.
He still didn't know what had happened to Anna.
Neither did Elsa.
But at least, for the moment, she wasn't alone.