Bonus chapter

Lost scenes

Elsa pounded on the bathroom door. "Come on, Anna," she shouted through the door. "I need to take a shower, too!"

"You can't rush perfection," Anna shouted back.

"Well, could you settle for 90 percent? You've been in there for 30 minutes!"

Steam poured out from the door cracks, condensing into liquid form as it approached Elsa.

"This wouldn't be a problem if we showered together like I suggested!" Anna trilled in a lighthearted voice.

Elsa sighed. "I told you, there is a time and place for that, and that time is not 8:30 in the morning! We have things to do today!"

"Sorry," came the reply. "Can't hear you over this fantastic shower that I'm taking!"

Elsa grunted in frustration.

This explains why she's always late for school.

She paced back and forth in front of the bathroom door. Never in her life had she met anyone who could take as long a shower as Anna could and still enjoy every minute of it. It was almost admirable, if not for the fact that she also had to take one. At this rate, she'd be lucky if there was any hot water left for her.

…hot water…

Slowly, Elsa's face twisted into an evil grin.

She extended her palm out in front of her, then began to clench her fingers together.

She heard a small yelp from behind the bathroom door as Anna was hit by the temperature change.

Elsa clenched her fingers tighter.

"Aah! Elsa!" came the cries. "Cut it out!"

Steam was no longer pouring out from the door.

"Jesus Christ, Elsa, this isn't funny!"

Elsa refused to budge, holding the water at the same precise temperature.

"All right, fine, I give up!" Anna shouted. Elsa heard the water turn off. "Happy?"

A few seconds later, the door flew open. Anna stormed out, wearing only a towel and dripping all over. She did not look happy.

"You know what you're having for dinner tonight?" she said, glaring at Elsa.

"Leftover…meatloaf?" Elsa ventured, trying to suppress a chuckle.

"Damn straight," Anna responded. She thudded off, trying to make her exit as forceful as possible, which isn't easy in a towel.

"You know, someday we'll look back on this and laugh," Elsa shouted at her retreating back.

"Not today, sister!" Anna called back.

xxxxxxx

Elsa wheeled the shopping cart down the aisle, Anna in tow.

"I told you," she insisted, "They moved the chips to aisle 10."

"Anna, I've been coming to this store for 10 years. They never change the layout of it."

"I didn't say they changed the layout. They just moved the chips so they're right next to the cookies. Makes sense, right? All the junk food in one place?"

Elsa had to admit that it did. She pushed the cart toward aisle 10.

"Do you normally go with your parents when they shop for groceries?" she asked Anna.

"Not usually," she replied. "But in this case, it's an emergency. Have you seen your fridge lately?"

"What's wrong with my fridge?"

"No cheese, barely any meat, just shelves full of vegetables! Lettuce, carrots, kale – when's the last time you've ever eaten kale?"

"It's called a balanced diet," Elsa defended.

"No, it's called 'not having any fun.' My grandfather is 89 years old and perfectly healthy, and he never touched a leaf of lettuce in his life."

Elsa sighed. "You know, some people actually like the taste of vegetables."

"Yeah, people who aren't me," Anna said. "Or you."

Elsa chose not to acknowledge this last point, mainly because it was true.

As they reached the aisle, Elsa looked at the signs hanging from the ceiling. Sure enough, potato chips had been moved here.

"Huh, it really is here. Never should have doubted you, Anna."

Then she turned back to the cart, and sighed.

In the short few seconds that she had looked away, three packages of jerky had landed in her shopping cart.

She looked at Anna, who was grinning nervously.

"We've gone over this, Anna. I told you I don't like beef jerky."

"I know that. This is BACON jerky."

"Really?" Elsa said, surprised. "They have that?"

"Oh, you bet. And now, we do too."

"Anna, I seriously have no reason to believe I would like this."

"But you love bacon!"

"And I like beef, too," Elsa pointed out. "It's not the ingredients, it's what they do to them."

"Come on, Elsa, I promise you'll like it," Anna pleaded.

She sighed. "Fine, I'll try them. But take two of these back. If I don't like them, there's no reason to buy three of them."

"Thanks." Anna grabbed one of the bags and started walking back towards the aisle. "I'll eat the other one if you don't want it."

"You're not the one who's paying for it!" Elsa shouted. Anna pretended not to hear.

She sighed once again, more weary than anything else. She's like a kid in a candy store.

On a hunch, she began to inspect the shopping cart. At the very front, a fourth bag of bacon jerky had sneakily been slid between two boxes of cereal.

A smile crept across Elsa's face, seemingly for no reason.

A very clever kid.

xxxxxxx

Elsa sat slumped on the couch. In front of her, the TV played. Despite the fact that she was looking right at it, however, she couldn't say exactly what was playing. Her eyes had glazed over at around 10:30, and she was currently in a half-asleep limbo. It appeared to be a show involving some guy with a beard using a remote control to drive full-sized pickup trucks into a lake, but she wasn't sure what, exactly, it was supposed to prove.

Naturally, it was on the History channel.

Anna's head rested on her lap. Once again, she had started out on the opposite end of the couch, yet through a complex series of wriggles and squirms, Anna had ended up right on top of her. She wasn't nearly as touchy-feely as she had been before, however. In fact, she seemed all but asleep.

It was quite pleasant to be so close without saying a word. Anna's boundless energy could be fun, but it could also be a little exhausting. Now, at last, she had calmed down a bit, granting Elsa some much-needed relaxation.

With her left hand, she absentmindedly stroked Anna's hair, feeling the smooth texture.

The fingers of her right hand scraped the bottom of the bacon jerky pouch, feeling around for any remaining crumbs.

To her credit, Anna had been very magnanimous in her victory. Besides the hint of a smug grin on her face, Anna had not said a word when Elsa admitted that she did, indeed, like the jerky. It wasn't exactly something she'd pick out for herself afterwards, but she had happily finished off two of the three bags, with Anna claiming one for herself.

The rest of the night had consisted primarily of both of them finding a series of creative ways to do nothing, eventually settling on television. All in all, it had been a very enjoyable day.

Now, however, it seemed it was about time for the day to come to an end.

Very gently, Elsa leaned forward, looking at Anna's face. Her eyes appeared to be closed, and she was breathing very slowly. If she wasn't asleep yet, she was right on the brink.

She grabbed up the remote from the table and switched the TV off.

Almost instantly, Anna's eyes flew open. "Hey, that show wasn't over," she protested.

"Your eyes were closed."

"I was still listening," Anna insisted.

Elsa chuckled. "All right, then, what did they just say?"

Anna looked up at her. "'Well, Jerry, when we adjusted the ramp to 15 degrees, I hardly expected it to go that far. I guess we've all learned something about physics today.'"

Elsa was surprised. "Wow, you weren't kidding."

"Of course not," she replied. "I only lie when there's something to be gained from it."

Elsa smiled at her. "I suppose that's a good way to look at it."

She leaned forward, gently nudging Anna's head out of her lap. "All right, I think it's time for bed." She stood up, walking towards the stairs.

Anna fell over, her head landing on the couch. "But I don't wanna," she said in an exaggerated whine.

Elsa put her hands on her hips, trying to fake a frown. "Now, young lady, are you going to go to bed, or am I going to have to carry you?"

Anna smirked. "Like you could carry me."

"You don't think so?" Elsa walked back to the couch, bent over, and put her arms under Anna's neck and legs. She easily picked her up.

"Whoa!" Anna exclaimed as she was lifted into the air. "You're really strong!"

"I guess," Elsa said, trying to keep the strain out of her voice. Slowly, she started walking towards the stairs again, Anna in her arms. "Either that, or you're really thin."

"I'd like to think it could be both," Anna said, grinning.

"Maybe," Elsa said.

She put her foot on the first step. "So, fair maiden, shall I carry thee to thy rest?"

She took another step, slowly climbing.

Thunk

She stepped back immediately, looking down worriedly.

"Thanks for the offer, fair maiden," said Anna, rubbing her head where the door frame had hit her. "But I think I can find my rest on my own."

Elsa's face turned redder than Anna's hair.

xxxxxxx

Elsa fidgeted in the bed, trying to refrain from moving around too much.

It was so strange. She had felt sleepy enough while she was on the couch, yet now her mind was racing with a hundred different thoughts. And the longer she held still, the more fidgety she became.

She turned to look at Anna, sleeping peacefully beside her.

Deep in slumber, Anna looked nothing short of angelic. Moonlight glinted through the window, illuminating her glossy red hair and throwing her immaculate features into contrast. Elsa smiled, wondering if she would ever get used to sleeping next to someone so beautiful. So far, it didn't look like it.

Suddenly, Anna started breathing quicker and shallower. Elsa, still enraptured by her beauty, noticed the change immediately. Anna's hands balled into fists, clenching the covers tightly.

Even as Elsa lay there, debating whether or not she should do something, Anna's eyes shot open.

She sat up, breathing quickly and looking around the room. After a few scans, she started to calm down.

"You all right?" Elsa asked.

Anna looked at her. "Yeah," she said. "Did I wake you up?"

"No, I couldn't sleep," Elsa said. "Bad dream?"

"You could say that," Anna said.

"Scary?"

She shook her head. "Disgusting."

"What?"

"I mean, my dream grossed me out so much, I woke myself up."

"Really?" Elsa said. "I've never heard of that. What could have possibly grossed you out that much?"

"Bugs," Anna said simply.

"Oh."

"Giant bugs."

"Oh god."

"All over the ceiling."

"Ugh, say no more!" Elsa said hurriedly.

"Sorry," Anna said.

"It's fine. How's the head?"

Anna winced. "Fine, until you brought it up again."

"Right, sorry. Want an ice pack?"

"Nah," Anna said dismissively. "Wouldn't want to wake up in Waterworld."

"Don't worry about it, Anna, it only melts if I want it to."

"Eh, I'll play it safe."

Anna rolled onto her back, sighing. "So now, I guess we just lie awake for the rest of the night."

Elsa propped herself up on one elbow. "Think so?"

"Probably. I mean, I'm wide awake now. I usually don't fall back asleep after a nightmare like that."

Elsa inched closer. "So, as long as we're both awake…is there anything you might want to do?" She smiled seductively.

Anna looked at her. "What are you proposing?"

"Depends. What are you open to?"

Anna laughed. "Why, Elsa, I never knew you could be so forward."

"I guess I'm full of surprises. So, what would you suggest?" Elsa asked.

Once again, a devious grin crept across Anna's face.

She leaned in close to Elsa, then started whispering into her ear.

Elsa's cheeks turned pink, then bright red.

When Anna had finished, Elsa looked at her. "And you're calling me forward?" she said incredulously.

Anna grinned. "Compared to before, I mean. So what do you think?"

Elsa thought about it. "I don't know, is that even possible?"

Anna shrugged. "You're the one with the powers, don't ask me."

"I…I suppose it's possible, but…Jesus, Anna, how would you even think of something like that?"

"Never underestimate my creativity."

Elsa sighed, still blushing. "All right, let's give it a go."

She was incredulous. To think that someone as beautiful as Anna could have such a dirty mind.

Elsa smiled. Yes, she did have a dirty mind. She was coarse, blunt, and rarely subtle.

And Elsa wouldn't have it any other way.