Chapter 12

Rope

Anna's figure disappeared as she ducked over a hill. Elsa could do nothing but listen as the low whine of the engine imprinted faded echoes in her mind. Alone. She thought. She laid on the ground. Water dripped into a puddle. The wind blew through the trees outside. She felt a cold, wet breeze roll over herself. It stuck to her and clung to the walls of the cave. Her nose recoiled from the musty smell the breeze brought with it. She tried to reflect on the days now past but she couldn't bring herself to it. Her mind raced with thoughts of both her own and Anna's fate. What were they going to do?

Elsa eased her shirt up. It was matted with blood which was beginning to crust over. Under her shirt, a bandage was fastened to her side, held in place by an awkward mass of tape. She peeled off the first few layers. A moan escaped her mouth. The bandage was speckled with blood and wet with whatever yellowy liquid her body was producing. She took a few deep breaths before propping herself up to inspect the wound. Another moan attempted to escape her but her lips held steadfast. The bullet hole had sealed up. Stitches stuck out in every direction from it. They crossed in mismatched patterns. Thank god she didn't have to perform any other serious medical procedures on her. It might even be better if she replaced them herself. Actually, maybe she should.

Anna wouldn't be back anytime soon so she had plenty of time. She began the long and arduous process of turning over and crawling across the cave to the medical supplies. She should've asked Anna to bring them closer. She felt every bump, divot, and scrape in the ground in her crawl. Elsa would put it plainly later by simply remarking, "It was unpleasant."

She opened the kit and rummaged through it, feeling it out with her hand. Her hand ending up grabbing a pair of medical scissors and antiseptic ointment. She lathered the ointment all over and slid the thin scissors under the thread with finesse. Surprisingly it didn't hurt as bad as she anticipated. The scissors flashed down the row of stitches, cutting as they went. When she was finished, to her surprise, the gash did not reopen or bleed. Instead it felt as if a great pressure had been relieved.

She tried standing again, using the cave wall as a crutch. She leaned over to look at her side again, afraid of what she'd see. Once again, to her surprise, nothing. Not a single drop of blood, no open wounds, no intestines peeking through. She felt herself getting stronger, or maybe she was just growing in confidence. Either way she didn't feel as useless as she did a few hours ago. She scooped the scissors up from the floor in a heavy handed manner.

By folding her arms behind her and in the same fashion as before, she removed the stitches. Almost instantaneously relief flooded through her. Breathing no longer hurt. The tension in her abdomen was gone. She straightened her back and tried stretching her side, slowly as to not reopen it. She felt her muscles shift. A few bones in her back popped into place.

She let out a long sigh. Her hand slid along the slick, mossy, edges of the cave as she shuffled her way outside. She felt the warm sun on her face. A low fog hung in the air. She had things to do.

She tightened the straps of twine she managed to put together. Once you knew how to collect the basic materials, it was fairly easy to build a rope that can hold a few hundred of pounds. She yanked on the twine that she was trying to hang between the two trees.
"Dammit." She whispered to herself. The rope was short by about a foot and a half. She wiped the sweat from her brow. The temperature was rapidly rising. The sun beat down on her platinum hair. At least she had that going for her. Although, if Hans was looking for her, her hair vibrated throughout the woods. They'd be able to see her miles away. It didn't really matter though. They wouldn't be on the island much longer. Just a few more days was all it would take then they'd be sailing though the skies, their destination, anywhere but here. Elsa threw the rope down in frustration.

Her hands we rough from running the twines through them. Her palms were bruised and sliced down the center. Two more feet, then she was done. She grabbed the makeshift knife she made from the medical scissors, medical tape, stiches thread, and a stick.

She took off, navigating in and around the thick mass of trees towards what she dubbed as her "twine spot." It was a thicket maybe half a mile from the cave where the ground sloped downwards to a small pond. Around the pond, an overgrown grove of palm trees. She ripped the fibers from the palm tree's leaves. Pulling the fibers stung her hands but she ignored the pain. She looked up at the sun. Anna would be back sometime soon. She probably wouldn't appreciate what Elsa was doing. She had to finish before Anna returned.

Her fingers moved rapidly, twisting and weaving the threads together. The rope burned the insides of her fingers as it slid past. After a few minutes she was able to make the rest she needed. Once again she took off into the woods, returning back to where she was mere moments before. After fastening the ropes together, she tested their tension. They vibrated in the air with a flick of Elsa's fingers. Satisfied she returned to the cave to wait for Anna.

Short chapter, super late upload. I'm busy. Sorry. As always, if you hate it, leave a review to let me know what I should change in the future. If you happen to enjoy it, let me know what you liked. Thanks!