Frozen Beyond [gxg]

Nifelheim

Elsa glanced over the breakfast table. Anna sat beside her and was saying something to Olaf while Kristoff and Keahi were talking and laughing across from them.

"Heard you two were wrestling last night." Keahi laughed, spearing some scrambled eggs with smoked salmon: Laks og eggerøre.

"Wait, what?" Kristoff's nose wrinkled as the chunk of food on the end of his fork slipped off when he looked over at Keahi.

Elsa hid her face with her hand and groaned. Luckily Anna didn't hear as she continued her conversation with Olaf.

Elsa moved the food around on her plate, taking small bites of her breakfast. Watching Keahi and Kristoff and absently smiling as the two playfully shoved one another.

Keahi was dressed nicely and her hair was down. Though the colorful beads that adorned the two smaller, decorative braids were gone and Elsa missed them.

They gave her character. Not that she needed it as she watched the colorful emotions bounce along Keahi's facial features. Her hair was brushed back, her hair falling a little past her shoulders now. It was getting long.

Anna bumped her shoulder and took her from her thoughts.

"She isn't going anywhere." Anna laughed, stuffing her mouth full of her breakfast.

Elsa chuckled, but it faded and she leaned back in her seat. Playing with her napkin on her lap, "Sometimes I wonder if it's too good to be true." She glanced down at her hands where she fiddled with her napkin. She thought about Keahi's nightmare last night and the images in Ahtohallen.

Anna touched her shoulder, setting her fork down. "Come on, let's go for a walk. Just you and me, it's been a while since we've been alone." Anna pushed her seat back and got up.

Elsa watched her and followed, trailing after Anna as they both left the room.

They went into the hall and Anna turned to her, walking backwards in front of her.

Elsa shifted under the scrutiny of Anna's gaze.

"How are you and Keahi?" Anna finally asked, adjusting to walk beside Elsa and looping their arms together.

Surprised by the question, she fell into the relaxed feel of Anna beside her. "We're fine. She has nightmares sometimes, I worry about her." Elsa paused, hesitating before putting a hand over her mouth and giggling. "Also, you and Kristoff might want to lock your door from now on."

Anna gave her a quizzical look. "What?"

Elsa flushed and laughed, embarrassed. "Olaf came into our room and announced that you and Kristoff were...ahem...wrestling."

Anna tripped and had a look of horror on her face as they both came to a stop. They looked at each other and burst into a fit of laughter.

"I thought I heard the door squeak open!" Anna managed to get out through her laughter. "Hey, that's not fair. Why haven't you got caught yet?"

Elsa halted, her laughter fizzled out as her eyes grew large. "What?"

"Well, yeah. I've heard you and Keahi before. I'm proud of you...you sound very enthusiastic." Anna laughed, squeezing Elsa's arm harder.

Elsa's face burned hot, she couldn't think of what to say and Anna just giggled in response. Elsa's hands flew to her burning cheeks. Could people hear them? Oh, gods. She thought she had better control than that. "Can you really hear us?" She finally peeped out.

"Only once, It was my fault I was about to barge in and I remembered...we kind of both are adults now and I can't be running in on you anymore." Anna chuckled, resting her head on Elsa's shoulder for a moment. "Hey young lady, you're supposed to wait until marriage, like me!" She chided, jokingly.

Elsa cleared her throat with an embarrassed laugh. "Do as I say, not as I do?" She asked awkwardly.

"Well, it doesn't matter anymore. I'm married." Anna waved what she said away.

"Can we not talk about this?" Elsa groaned.

"And miss the opportunity to see you flustered and embarrassed over this? Not a chance!" Anna laughed, smiling over to Elsa before her smile wavered. "So you seem happy. Why did you seem so gloomy at breakfast?"

Elsa shifted, "Keahi had a nightmare last night. She mentioned Nifelheim."

Anna stiffened, "How would she know about that? I thought it was just an old myth."

"So was Ahtohallen." Elsa whispered.

They both stopped in the hall, looking at one another before Anna and Elsa seemed to have the same idea and both rushed towards the royal library.

The library was lined ceiling to floor, shelf upon shelf, of both old and new books. The ones that ventured further back into the library were older, collecting dust.

Elsa combed through the old books. Opening and closing books as they spit out the dust that had been collecting on them for years.

Most of the pages were yellowed with time, the smell of worn leather and musty pages filled the small corner they scoured the shelves in.

Beyond the old pages of troll lore, Elsa and Anna had a large pile on the old corner desk of discarded books.

Anna grunted, falling back as her tower of books collapsed on and around her. Dust settled like a stagnant cloud over her. "We are never going to find it." She coughed.

Elsa tucked a strand of loose hair behind her ear as she leaned over Anna. "We have to keep looking."

Anna let out another whine and parted the books to the side. "I'm the queen, don't I have a royal advisor or something for this?"

"Do you want one?" Elsa asked absently as she thumbed through an old book. She wrinkled her nose and dropped the book immediately when a bug scurried across the page. She lived in a forest and she still flinched at random bugs. "I didn't have one but I liked doing the paperwork."

"Gross, who likes paperwork? And Yes, you should be my royal advisor." Anna concluded, sprawling out on the floor on her stomach, thumbing through the books.

"No, thank you." Elsa laughed, picking up yet another book.

"Hm, what about Keahi?" Anna grinned.

"Especially no." Elsa cleared her throat and glanced away quickly, thumbing through the book more instantaneously than she intended.

"And why not? She seemed to show that she has a good character despite everything."

Elsa struggled with the answer. Not wanting to admit it out loud. But one peek at Anna had her sighed and grabbing another book. Anna wouldn't let it go if she didn't answer. "I've come to rely on her companionship so much," her cheeks heated. "I'm going to be selfish a little while longer with her. I like her all to myself."

"Aww, you've got it bad, sister." Anna teased before letting out a loud shriek and leaping up. "I found it!"

Elsa put the book down that she was holding and rushed over to Anna. They both huddled over the book in the dim light of the lantern.

The book was old, the pages tearing at the corners and the words starting to fade. The cover read "Nifelheim". The leather black and the words ominously written in old gothic cursive.

Anna opened the pages, scouring them for information as she read some passages that seemed helpful out loud. "Nifelheim, land of the shadows and where the sinners — rapist, murderers, all gather. Overseen by the Queen, Hel." Anna murmured, her fingers tracing down further. "She was locked in Nifelheim after the war of sin and truth, cursing the day she would be released back into the world." Anna shivered, grimacing.

Elsa took the book to continue reading. "She vowed to reign over the light world and break free of her prison. And it will be a fight against light and dark, growth and decay, and will be won by those who have seen the dark but strive towards the light." Elsa whispered.

The sisters exchanged a glance. And there, they saw something in one another.

Dread. Sadness. Fear.

Because they had a feeling, this next fight would be for more than just love.