The Honeymoon

"Now," Elsa said, looking at Kristoff, "Here's the plan." She pointed to the map. "There is an older part of the castle that has hardly been used. It's a small house connected to the main building. I know my parents spent their honeymoon back there, but it hasn't really been documented as of yet. It's a one room cabin with a small kitchen in the rear. As I said, it is connected to the castle in case of emergencies. Sven can still stay in the stables and Olaf will be dropping off messages that he feels are necessary to act upon. I'm sure none of that will happen, but just in case. A queen and her prince should always be briefed. It is up to you and Anna to make sure all the subjects are spoken for."

She picked her head up from the map and looked in Kristoff's eyes. "You got that, Kristoff? Being royal isn't all that easy. You will have duties to perform and subjects to see and take care of. My parents were hands on, they kept the gates open until, well, until my powers progressed to the point where they couldn't anymore. The people were disappointed as they couldn't have the openness, but we made up for that three years ago. The gates are open all the time for everyone."

"I'm prepared, Elsa. I'll be able to handle it."

Elsa nodded. "I think you will, Kristoff. And I know you'll take good care of my sister. But I'll be here running things while you're gone. Kai and Gerda can help you if you need it."

She folded the map and looked up at him. "You know what to do?"

Kristoff nodded. "Don't worry about anything."

Elsa smiled and hugged him. "I'll be here if you need me. Oaken just put in a sauna at my direction two years ago. You have your own to enjoy." She kissed his cheek and pulled back. "Good luck and have fun. I left some historical places in and around the castle and the surrounding area IF you need it."

And then she was gone, leaving the map and the directory. Elsa was right. It wasn't easy being a royal.

But he loved Anna. He would do anything for her and this was one of them. Elsa would be here for the first three days, but there was something she had to take care of in the Enchanted Forest. Being a bridge between the forest and Arendelle wasn't easy either and he respected her wishes. They'd manage.

XXXXXXXXXX

"So my prince," Anna teased, "where's this great place you picked out?"

Kristoff grabbed Sven's reins and spurred him on. "A lot of this was Elsa's idea. She told me that…"

Anna frowned. "You spoke to Elsa?" she said. "You and Elsa planned this?"

"She wanted to surprise you, Anna. I don't really know all the ins and outs of the area, so I…."

Anna's eyes widened. "I could tell you tons of things, Kristoff. My childhood was lonely, a lot like yours. I did nothing but explore this castle pretty thoroughly."

"Yeah, I know, but did you get this far over? According to your sister…."

Far away, a rumble of thunder boomed and a streak of lightning flashed in the sky.

"I don't believe this," Kristoff said, "Come on, Sven."

"It's far enough away, Kristoff," Anna said, snuggling closer to him. "Shouldn't be that far, I mean, how big is the castle?"

"Elsa guessed that it would be almost an hour to circle the entire castle, so maybe…."

Another rumble sounded.

"It's getting closer," Anna said. "Who does this?"

Kristoff smiled. "I asked her the same thing. She said your parents drove around on their honeymoon. It made them feel as if they were going somewhere different."

Another rumble, closer now, and another streak of lightning flashed. And then the rain started.

XXXXXXXXXX

Kristoff and Anna found the entrance. As they were soaking wet already, Kristoff insisted that he carry Anna over the threshold. With Sven and the wagon stabled for the night and the servants under orders to leave the newlyweds alone, they managed to make their way to the tiny house with the one room and the kitchen in the rear.

Without unpacking and without thinking, they pulled off their wet clothes and tumbled into the waiting bed, smiling and laughing with one another. No words were spoken as they made love for the first time. Their energy spent, they promptly fell asleep, forgetting that they hadn't eaten.

Kristoff woke first, forgetting where they were. The small clock on the mantle chimed three and he guessed it was early morning before the sun rose. He managed to get to the window and pulled back the curtains and he had guessed right. The rain stopped as well, but their clothes were still on the floor soaking wet.

He managed to wake Anna and the two of them slipped into their robes, ran down to the fjord to watch the sunrise. Well, they attempted to watch the sunrise anyway, before the rain started up again, forcing them back into the house. This time they got back to the house without getting wet.

The well-stocked kitchen that Elsa told Kristoff about turned out to be not so well stocked after all and Anna managed to get Olaf as he brought his messages.

The bed collapsed the next time they made love and the stove wouldn't light. There was no wood for the fireplace and nothing to light the fire with. Olaf didn't come back and neither did the servants.

The roof was leaking, there were puddles on the floor and it was still raining. The clothes they brought were still wet and all they had left were their robes.

And there was no sauna.

"Well," Kristoff said, "That's that. What do we do we do now?"

Anna smiled. "This is still connected to the castle, right?"

Kristoff narrowed his eyes. "You know where we are?"

Anna laughed and put her arms around Kristoff's neck. "Yes I do. It's a wonder why your rooms never flooded. They're right down this hallway, no more than five minutes from here."

Kristoff smiled. "You're a wonder, Anna."

"I told you," Anna said.

"Well, then, lead the way. "

And with the storm still raging outside, the two of them managed to unlock the connecting door and ran down to Kristoff's rooms, where they spent the remainder of their honeymoon.

It was Elsa, after finding out that the house needed work, had it torn down and had it rebuilt away from the castle to be used for guests and special occasions.

A few months later, Kristoff and Anna visited again, this time with much success.

And everyone lived happily ever after.