Chapter 17 Part 2

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*This chapter contains explicit material*

The sound of Marie's apartment door closing filled the small space after Elsa and Marie entered. Elsa locked the door and rested one of her hands on it as Marie situated her birds on their little wooden table. The queen closed her fist. It had been a long night. After Marie and she had found out about Amos being in jail, Marie had been in a state close to catatonic. They did not stay in the hotel overnight per Marie's request, and the drive back to Small Falls was eerily quiet. Elsa turned around to look at Marie. She had tried starting conversations on the way back, but Marie only responded with one- or two-word answers, her eyes staring widely ahead of her. Now, Marie stared at her birds' cage while the light of dawn crept through her window.

Elsa clasped her hands in front of her. She must be going through a lot right now, Elsa thought to herself. The royal remembered how she felt when she heard that her former teacher, Drew Rutfield, had been apprehended for attacking her as a child. The mere fact alone that she would be safe from him was a lot to take in at the time, so Elsa was trying to empathize with Marie's situation. Marie currently had legal protection against Amos and had so since age ten. Now, at 27, Amos was finally convicted, albeit for attacking others, but Elsa knew that this was still extremely significant for Marie. She stepped towards Marie, who was still staring widely at the bird cage. Marie flinched when Elsa touched her upper arm. "You should get some rest," Elsa said softly.

Marie nodded and took a step back. "Yeah, I should," she replied, her voice monotone. Elsa felt her heart lurch within her. It was so different from the normal Marie. Marie shook her head. "Um, I'm going to take a shower. Still got wine in my hair." Marie gave her a tiny smile but tore her gaze away from Elsa. "You should rest, too."

Elsa nodded. Marie went into the bathroom and shut the door. It was eerily quiet, so quiet that Elsa could hear Marie undressing. She swallowed a lump in her throat as her heart raced. Not the time, Elsa! she thought desperately, shaking her head, but she could not help it. What would happen now? Since Amos was out of the picture, did that mean she and Marie had succeeded in rebalancing the light and dark? If so, what did this mean for them both? Was Elsa going to be pulled back to her own world, or would she stay here? Elsa leaned against the kitchen counter and stared at the floor.

"Because...I love her."

Elsa stood and knocked on the bathroom door. "Marie?" she called out, her voice cracking.

Marie opened the door and poked her head out. "Yeah?" Elsa found herself fumbling over her words as she caught a glimpse of Marie's bare skin, even though Marie was trying to hide her naked body behind the door. Elsa felt herself grow red. Marie withdrew and shut the door. After a few seconds, she emerged, her body wrapped in a towel. She approached Elsa and cupped her face. "We need to have a conversation, don't we?" Marie asked softly.

Elsa pressed her forehead against Marie's as her hands drifted to Marie's bare shoulders. "Yes," she breathed, drawing Marie close. Their foreheads stuck together, causing Elsa to pull away. "But it can wait until after you bathe." She squeezed Marie's hands. "I know you don't want to be sticky anymore."

Marie tilted her head and smiled. "It sounded important."

Elsa felt her cheeks turn red as she squeezed Marie's hands even tighter. "Marie...I want you to know that if the rift comes, and we both can't go through, then I am staying here." Elsa looked her in the eyes. "With you."

A few moments of silence burned between them. Marie blinked rapidly as her grip slowly began to tighten around Elsa's hands as the gravity of the words that were spoken sank in. Marie trembled, her eyes wide. "Y-you'd do that?" she asked quietly.

You've reached the end of published parts.

⏰ Last updated: Jul 29 ⏰

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