Musings of an overactive and infinite imagination

→˚₊· :🐚: ੭*

written by cinnamondumbb ♡

in which Lo'ak first communes with Neteyam at the Spirit Tree after his passing.

where Tsireya and Payakan are there for Lo'ak when he needs them most.

author's note: i haven't written anything in a rly long time, i know i'm a little rusty and maybe this piece is absolute shit, but i'm practicing to get better ! constructive criticism is always welcome :) thank you soso much for taking the time to read my work, it means a lot to me <3

word count: 1,809

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Almost two years had gone by since his brother's death. Almost two years since Lo'ak could not save him.

The Sully boy shifted in his slumber, his thoughts too dark, his heart too heavy to allow him to rest. Giving up on the idea of sleeping altogether, Lo'ak got up before sunrise, sneaking out of his pod, being careful not to startle his family. It would be best to not be there when they all woke up, anyway. He could not stand to be there with them, that day of all days.

After calling for his ilu, Lo'ak dived in the water without making a sound, a skill he had mastered with his time amongst the Metkayina.

Diving always helped pacifying his troubled mind. It made him forget about everything above the surface, concentrating only on his breathing, his surroundings, the flow of energy in and out of him — just like Tsireya had taught him. The boy was able to find peace within, even if only for a short while.

Finding Payakan was a rather easy task. Crossing the reefs to meet his spirit brother had become part of Lo'ak's routine by now. He had grown so used to the path that he did not need to think about where he was going, his ilu would simply take him there.

Payakan rejoiced at the sight of his brother, picking him up with his fin and bringing him closer.

He knew what that day meant to Lo'ak.

"I See you, brother", Was all that Payakan said.

"I See you", Lo'ak signed in response.

Neither of them said anything else, being together in silence was enough. The boy laid down on the tulkun's back, gazing at the stars, his mind lost else where.

Lo'ak did not know how long it had been since he left the village, or for how long he had laid in the dark ocean with his thoughts, all he knew was that the sun was already in the sky when she arrived.

She moved so gracefully in the water towards him. The bottom half of her face was hidden in the water, but he could tell by her eyes that she was smiling. Lo'ak knew that she was insecure about her smile, it was 'too full of teeth', according to her. He disagreed, he could not think of a smile he'd rather see.

However, her pretty smile faded as soon as she saw the grim expression plastered on the Sully boy's face. She rushed to him, greeting Payakan before the tulkun helped her up his back, while Lo'ak sat up straight.

However, the boy's gaze was still lost in someplace else.

Tsireya did not speak immediately. She was not sure of what was going on, what pained him so on that morning. Gently, she reached for his face. He sighed, his eyes fluttering shut as he leaned into her touch.

"Happy Birthday, Lo'ak", Tsireya wished, brushing her thumb across the omatikayan's cheek. "What is wrong?"

Lo'ak could feel his throat tighten as well as his eyes starting to burn. He did not wish cry, especially not in front of Tsireya. He reached for her other hand, holding it close to his chest, which was growing heavy as breathing became more and more difficult. All he could think was that he did not deserve this, he did not deserve her, he did not deserve anything.

"Breath." Tsireya made him look at her at last, his eyes were full of the tears he refused to shed. "Just breath."

"How did you know I was going to be here?", Lo'ak voiced his curiosity once he had gotten his breathing under control.

"Well, it was not hard to guess", That made him smile, only a little "Your family is looking for you. I thought I'd come here and catch you."

"Catch? Don't you mean fetch?" Lo'ak never missed the opportunity to tease her, it did not matter how somber his mood was.

"Tsk, I can catch and fetch you like fish if I want to!" Now Lo'ak was laughing wholeheartedly as he looked at his enfuriated girlfriend trying to hit him playfully, and struggling with it.

He held her arms as she wiggled and laughed trying to get away from his grip. Payakan suddenly shifted under them, making Tsireya almost slip into the water, but Lo'ak took hold of her before she could fall, bringing her into his arms again, her back resting against his chest. He could feel a part of the tension leave his body. It felt good to be able to just laugh and be silly with his girl.

Her tone was serious when she spoke again, after they had caught their breaths and their laughs faded, enjoying a comfortable silence for a little while.

"Lo'ak, what is wrong? Today is a happy day, you are fifteen! You begin training for iknimaya, you earn your place with the people."

"Yes, and I'll help you through everything!" Payakan added, in an attempt to cheer the boy up.

Of course Lo'ak knew all that. Theoretically, he was fully grown now, and ready to start the many coming-of-age rituals of the Metkayina.

"I know, I know, guys. I'll get to bond with a tsurak, earn my first tattoo--"

"Exactly! Are you not excited? Oh, are you scared? That's okay-"

"No, it's not that" Lo'ak scoffed "It's not the iknimaya that scares me" He felt choked up again. He was grateful neither Tsireya nor Payakan could see his face. He pulled Tsireya closer, placing his chin on top of her shoulder, building up the courage to finally voice what had been afflicting him. "I'm scared of what this means, I'm scared of becoming-" He could feel tears running down his cheeks as he tried his best to push them back. "of becoming older than my older brother."

"Oh, Lo'ak..." Payakan hurt for his spirit brother.

Now, that the words were finally out there, Lo'ak felt an empty feeling settle inside of him.

Tsireya turned to face him, her eyes full with tears as well. She held his face between in her hands, pulling him closer till their foreheads met. Lo'ak weeped quietly know, his tears landing softly on Tsireya's cheeks.

They stood like that for a while, eyes closed, breaths intertwined. Lo'ak thought about his family. Would they really like to celebrate his birthday? Or would they keep thinking the same that he was thinking? That his older brother would never reach the age of fifteen, that he was taken from them too soon, that Lo'ak should have been gone, and not him.

Tsireya lifted his chin, locking eyes with him, all she said was:

"Come with me."

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Payakan swam with them nearly all the way, only stopping at the entrance of the Cove of the Ancestors. Then, it was best to go by ilu.

It took more very little convincing from Tsireya to Lo'ak agree to it. Communing with him for the first since what happened. It had been almost two years and he was not even able to say his name, or talk about the occurred.

Of course, it was not the first time Tsireya, or a member of his family, attempted to take him there. Lo'ak was the only one who refused to go. After the funeral, his mother would meet her eldest son in the Spirit Tree nearly every day. Now, the visits were held every month with the entire family. Except for Lo'ak.

But today was different. More than ever, Lo'ak felt the need of his older brother's guidance.

Tsireya was there with him, something he was very grateful for. She demonstrated how to do it, Lo'ak followed her lead, taking his queue and connecting it to one of the strange seaweed-like leaves of the Spirit Tree.

"Stay calm.", she signed to him underwater, and so he did.

He slowed his own heartbeat, calming himself down, before closing his eyes.

Lo'ak woke up in the forest that was once his home. Everything was so familiar to him still, the sound of the animals, of waterfalls, approaching footsteps-

His approaching footsteps.

"Lo'ak! I'm back with the kit-"

Just like that, there he was, a younger version of him, but still his brother, nonetheless. Not in his mind tormenting his thoughts, nor in his nightmares, where Lo'ak witnessed his death over and over again, unable to save him.

He was right there.

Neteyam.

Neteyam kneeled beside his younger brother, who finally took a look at himself. He felt smaller, sitting on the grass floor of the forest, with his old clothes on. His face was wet with tears from a stinging pain on his knee. Lo'ak was slowly understanding. This was a memory.

"-I told you not to climb that damn tree without me, skxawng."

"I know, I'm sorry." Lo'ak could only giggle at Neteyam's reaction. God, he had missed it. He remembered it now, climbing that tall tree after his brother cautioned him about it. He remembered falling, scraping his knee, Neteyam rushing to get a first aid kit without anyone noticing, not wanting for Lo'ak to get in trouble by getting their parents involved.

"It's okay, baby bro, I'm going to get you patched up" Neteyam started gently cleaning his brother's knee with a gaze. He already acted with such responsibility for his early age, a true son of toruk makto. The son Lo'ak never was. "C'mon, bro, stop crying, it's just a scraped knee"

"Sorry, it just- it hurts so much, Neteyam" Lo'ak was not speaking of his knee, but his brother did not know.

"I know, Lo'ak, but all wounds heal with time" He said without taking his eyes off of Lo'ak's knee, too concentrated in applying the medicine, then a cotton patch.

"All wounds?" Lo'ak could feel all the hope in his words as he looked up at his older brother.

"Yes, all wounds! Sure, it hurts now and, shit, it's going to sting for a couple of days, but soon enough the pain will go away."

"You promise?"

"Yes, brother! Now, c'mon, dad promised to take us hunting today!"

"I remember that!" Lo'ak chuckled between hiccups as the memory came back to him. Riding with his father and brother on ikran, hunting and camping together. At night, their father shared tales of his old life on earth by the campfire. He remembered thinking that was a perfect day. Lo'ak could not think of a better day to be with Neteyam.

The eldest Sully boy helped his brother up, making sure he could stand on his own before letting go of him.

Lo'ak had fully stopped crying now, his heart felt lighter than ever.

"You should go ahead, Neteyam, get our stuff ready. I'll be there soon."

"Alright, baby bro, I'll be waiting for you."

Neteyam smiled back at him, before disappearing into the forest.

[neteyam x metkayina!oc/reader]

summary. when push comes to shove, Ri'sha supposes a little fraternizing with the outsiders won't hurt anyone.

developer notes. you can imagine y/n but a name makes it easier for me to write...hehe.

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Ri'sha didn't understand what the near-crazy fawning over water was. Don't get her wrong, she loved every sea creature from the smallest fish to the biggest Tulkun but it was this knack of her clansmen to spend almost all day in the water — from dawn to eclipse — that really confused her.

Nonetheless, she wasn't exempt from her friends' adventures to secure secluded coves exclusive to them, just like their parents and grandparents before them, like a rite of passage. And often she got dragged along to far-off coordinates, almost crossing the reef but never bold enough to actually do it.

That meant she too had to wake with those troublesome conch horns. Some of them woke up even before that, eager to start hunting! How, she knew not.

But today was different. It was as she sat on the warm sand, basking under the rays of the sun that they sounded again. The children whom she had allowed to compete for burying her underneath the silver crystals that made up the shore halted.

Catching her breath from impish fingers tickling her skin, Ri'sha sat up, equally lost as the wide-eyed children. Her frown deepened as the adults started filtering out of their marui pods, trickling onto the coast like a cast of crabs.

At a small grasp tugging at her hand, she looked down at Siret. The little boy chewed on his lower lip, bouncing on his two feet. "Ri'sha, eclipse is a long way away, right? What's happening now?"

Upon his pondering, the rest broke out of their daze. Uameä scrunched her nose, spotting her mother amongst the crowd quickly advancing towards their little group. "Is playtime over already?"

"Children!" Nimah called out, dashing towards them as she scooped her daughter up from the sand. "You must return to your parents. They are all looking for you. You too, Ri'sha. Hurry!"

Kir stomped his feet on the ground. "I don't want to return! We've only just begun playing!"

Ri'sha placed a hand on the child's head, keeping him from running into the water. "Ay, lì’fyeng si!" (Hey, be respectful!) She nodded at the crowd forming behind them, "What is with the sudden gathering?"

The panic settling in her gaze was as clear as day. The woman hesitated, turning away and ushering the kids along before muttering in an aghast tone for only her to hear, "Forest dwellers."

Getting the children to their parents was not the hard part, it was finding said adults in the wave of them huddling around Olo'eyktan and Tsahìk. Paired with the bubbling feeling in her stomach — be it anxiety or excitement — her curiosity was bursting at the seams of her patience.

Finally, she broke through to the small parting at the end of the shore. Her eyes were drawn to the giant Ikran, their skin a clash of blues, greens and spontaneous red or yellow embellished saddles.

But glancing at the people in front of these predator birds, she could not restrain a quiet gasp. They were. . .extraordinarily blue!

Lithe bodies that were nothing like the stockier Metkayina, broad shoulders, tall gait and thin tails flickering behind them — these were the forest people.

Ri'sha didn't know exactly what she had expected but they were far beyond any picture she had drawn in her mind when her mother described them to her. They were, simply put, unique.

And dare she say, beautiful!

As if he had somehow heard her, the taller of the two teen boys snapped his head towards her. His golden gaze was vibrant, inquisitive and full of awe. She bit back a laugh. Seemed like her village, tended to render the foreigners speechless.

But her amusement did not last long.

"We have done it once, Ronal. We can do it again. Besides, turning them away is not right. They seek help, they don't want trouble."

Ronal grated her teeth, baring her fangs. "It is unusual beyond adaptation. We cannot just let them into water knowing they are physically incapable of keeping up. How different will it be from turning them away? You know what happened once, will you be keen on repeating your mistake again?"

Ri'sha had barged in during a heated exchange between them. It was moments like these she cursed her inability to read social cues. Fortunately, they were too wrapped up in their conversation to notice her.

"Mother, it's Ri'sha!"

She halted in her backtracking only to glare at Ao'nung who smiled slyly. Ronal swiveled on her feet, pinning her with a sharp look. She hissed, "You! Where have you been? I've searched everywhere looking for you!"

Ri'sha lowered her head. It was hard trying to portray some semblance of guilt when she clearly felt none. "Oeyä sap'alute (my apologies). I was with the children. They wanted to play."

She pointedly avoided looking at the newcomers. It was bad enough she was getting scolded in front of the whole village, she couldn't imagine what these people would make of her character. Well, too late to worry about that now.

The Tsahìk frowned, "You need to be more responsible, girl." She turned back to her mate, "Fine. If you will let them stay, they must learn to live with our rules, adhere to our ways. Only then I will accept them as our own."

Tonowari stayed silent for a long while, contemplating her words. At last, he gave a brisk nod. "That is fair." He turned to his people, gesturing towards the new family, "They will stay with us. Treat them as your brothers and sisters, teach them our ways. They will be like babies taking their first breath; be patient with them. So that they do not have to live with the burden of being useless!"

The father let his youngest child down from his embrace, placing his hand on her shoulder, "What do we say?"

She was giddy with newfound relief. "Thank you!" Ri'sha smiled at her, already scheming about how to take the girl as her charge.

Tomowari tilted his head in acknowledgement before pointing at his children who straightened their stance on cue. "My children — Tsireya and Ao'nung and my niece Ri'sha will help your kids with their hunting. Learn well."

Ao'nung went to complain but the Olo'eyktan had spoken. Ri'sha rubbed her eyes, taking the lead to help the forest Na'vi with their belongings. She took a crate from the mother, moving behind Tsireya in search for an empty pod.

"We're giving them that one?" Ri'sha balked as they walked — or more appropriately, bounced on the walkways connecting the marui nestled between large groves.

Tsireya shrugged, almost dropping the sack made from the bark of trees held in her arms, "Woah— yes, mother said it is the only one big enough for them to be comfortable. Besides, I'm sure you can do with some neighbors."

They rounded a corner, their guests following silently with the exception of Tuk, who took the initiative to copy Ri'sha as the older girl bounced ahead. Step one of gathering another student was successfully proceeding.

Just then, some rustling was heard from one of the two pods at the very rear of the village, almost along the waterline. Ri'sha tried to speed up the group but there was not nearly enough time and too many of them.

Her mother emerged from behind the flaps blowing alongs the salty wind that pricked her skin. She raised a brow, crossing her arms. "And where were you all day long?"

Neteyam came to a stop, nearly bumping into Kiri's back when their group halted abruptly. Lo'ak wasn't so lucky and nearly took their sister down with him into the water had it not been for him holding them back by their shoulders.

Kiri glared at Lo'ak, also at him for some reason, and clutched the threaded fabric wrapped around her shoulders closer. He had asked what it was for when they landed and she'd revealed that she felt so exposed without the cover of trees that almost touched the sky and shielded them. He agreed.

"What's the hold up?" She grumbled, Lo'ak tugging on her tail and earning a smack with the appendage. "By Eywa, one more time you-"

"Kids", their father's voice reminded them that they were not at Hometree, surrounded by the comfort of familiarity.

Neteyam peered over his mother's shoulder and got a peek at a Metkayina woman who blocked their way.

The Olo'eyktan's neice — Ri'sha sheepishly turned around, running to the empty marui beside them to drop the crate full of utensils before coming back again. "I was by the water, mother", she replied.

"And what were you doing there? I told you that you were to help me pick out—" Her mother paused, blinking owlishly at his family. Neteyam found it absurd that she'd taken this long to notice their not-so-usual appearance.

"Oel ngati kameie", his mother addressed the woman, turning towards them and hinting for them to do the same.

The children dropped their head, bringing their hand up to their forehead and down.

Instead of answering in kind, her expression turned sour. The woman chose to ignore them, haughty words hissed at her daughter, "What business do they have here?"

Ri'sha twirled a loose curl around her finger. "Tsahìk thought it best to let them be assisted by someone who knows their culture."

Used to our culture?

Before he could ask or even wonder what she meant by that, Ri'sha's mother looked at them disdainfully and she stormed away.

"What was that all about?" Lo'ak broke the terse silence. Nobody had a clue.

At last, Tsireya sighed, patting Ri'sha on her upper arm, whispering something in her ear. She wore a crestfallen expression, a stark difference from her playful nature that he'd seen in the short while he had known of her existence. He decided, it didn't suit her at all.

"That was mother", she replied tentatively. "She doesn't like visitors, much less Omatikaya people."

Whether she meant it like that or not, his mother took some offence in that statement. And so did he, though he tried not to show it. "Why us? We do not even know you all."

"No you don't", the girl agreed, her hand ghosting above the singular crescent tattoo around her left eye. "Grudges can oftentimes be irrational." Then, she smiled but it was clearly strained. "I will not burden you with my problems on the first day", she jested, beckoning them over to what was going to be their new home.

It was spacious enough to let all of them gather in one place to rest. The sensible part of Neteyam said it was enough but the child in him yearned for the large, twining branches with the luminous vines he was so accustomed to. It will have to do until they returned home.

Jake walked in first, assessing the pod. Here and there were little trinkets made of seashells and corals. Ri'sha chuckled as she saw them, pulling out a long vine threaded with dried leaves. "This used to be my playroom. I will clean it up for you."

Neytiri stepped in after them, dropping the mattress on the ground. "No, let them be. They serve as a link to memories. It is special to you, is it not?"

Ri'sha smiled, nodding.

"I'll be heading out, now. Lessons start early tomorrow", Tsireya quipped as she bowed her head at the Sully family and took her leave.

"Thank you for you help", Jake looked at her as Tuk ran around the length of their pod, circling him.

"No, I must thank you for not being cross with me. My mother's actions were unfair."

A hand was placed on her shoulder. Neytiri smiled at the girl, "You should not apologise, you did nothing wrong. You have already helped us a lot. Thank you."

"Hey, it's an Ikran", Tuk spoke up as she came across a painting on the canvas wall. "It looks real!"

"The wings are crooked and the head is not that round", Lo'ak interjected. "But it's decent."

Ri'sha snorted at his pointers, "Thanks for the tips. Ten year old me would've appreciated that."

"You drew that?" Neteyam walked up behind his brother, squinting his eyes at the picture. Tuk was right; though the proportions were a bit crooked, it looked real. "It's really good."

She fought back a flush at the barrage of compliments, "Uh-huh, thanks. Anyway, come to the shore later to get your food. We have a tradition of sharing our catch. And be there in the morning too, we'll start on your breathing! See you tomorrow!"

Neteyam watched as the girl bounced away the same path they had just walked on, several thoughts forming in his head. And quite troubling was the fact that it started with her big blue eyes and ended with her astounding art skills.

"Wait. . .how do you learn to breathe again?"

Notes :

i have no idea where this came from. let's just say, I walked out of the cinema a changed woman.

anyway, here's this mini-series for my precious baby Nete. why'd he have to go and die, huh?! :<(

Click images for better view

Some Close Ups:

Another cabinet:

I built and wired everything myself and the lights are hooked up to Google Home so I can tell it to turn on and off when needed.

I am expanding my collection and there is much more on the way. I will be getting another shelf to return some things that were bumped off to make room and to accommodate the new arrivals.

He couldn’t remember off the top of his head how he got there, or at least how he got into the position he was currently in. A familiar warmth was curled up on his right, but also felt his arm instinctively wrapped around someone else on his left. Kristoff opened his eyes slowly to see that he was still in the side drawing room where he had gone to sit down after the ball, except now he had both Anna and Elsa curled up with him.

The Yule ball came back in hazy memories, he obviously hadn’t been asleep for very long but his mind was trying very hard to doze off again. He couldn’t recall what the loud mouthed trade merchant from the west had said, but he remembered his blood boiling as the man laughed. There was always at least one at every party. One person, too big for their own breeches as they looked down (or up, rather) their noses at Kristoff. First it was Sven. Then Kristoff’s clothes. Then his status. Then his breeding.

Kristoff resisted running a hand over his face as it all came rushing back. The asshole had called him a mongrel, asking if Kristoff enjoyed being the royal pet. The mountain man was very much ready to split the seams of his new formal coat to punch the guy in the face, but a sudden drop in temperature stopped them both. 

Kristoff could count on one hand how many times he had seen Elsa truly angry. He didn’t know if it was the hour, or the chaotic morning, or maybe a glass too much of wine, but frost was curling out from under the Queen’s dress as she walked up to the merchant. 

It was too bad the man didn’t have a tail, it would have been wedged very nicely between his legs as he scampered off. 

Everything died down after that, both Kristoff and Elsa irate and Anna desperately trying to calm them both down. He had left them so he could cool off, not wanting to argue or start a fight, especially not with Anna, especially not tonight. 

He could hear her murmuring against his chest, bringing his attention back to the present. Kristoff couldn’t help but smile softly at how different they were. Anna was practically on top of him, where as Elsa was curled up against him, her feet hooked around one of his legs and his arm instinctively keeping her from falling backwards off the couch. 

Rude merchants and nobles be damned, these two were his family. He wasn’t fond of politics, and less so of proper etiquette, but these two crazy women made it worth it. 

Anna and her sister Elsa.

No, he corrected himself in his head. Our sister. 

whoa, another fic?? someone better stop me

anyway, when i was writing Some Things Change, i’d had this overwhelming urge to delve further into everyone’s feelings and reactions, as disney has a tendency to half-ass human emotion?? there are consequences for actions; this is known. i wanted to explore consequences and how they’re dealt with - delving into Anna and Elsa like this isn’t something I’ve done before, but it was fun. hopefully it’s well done :’)

i’m definitely an anna fan (not just because we have the same weird name); she’s a character that helped me on a personal level when i was in a time of need. i’ve never really related to nor liked Elsa but i do try really hard to understand her perspective, and i like her more now that i’ve explored her character.

this fic is very pro Anna and Elsa! it does not favour one or the other. that said, if you are an Elsanna shipper, leave. This is strictly platonic and sisterly and i don’t want y’all fucking it up lol

Warnings - this fic contains: characters with ptsd, emotional trauma, mentions of neglect including child neglect, mentions of panic attacks, detailed anxiety attacks, mentions of severe loss/death, and details of grief. I know these warnings sometimes sound ridiculously intense compared to what the story really is, but i’d rather be overdramatic than underdramatic. (fic is about double the length of the last one, and it takes place after the events of Frozen2, so this is your spoiler warning??)

Also, I can’t believe the feedback on my last story?? i’m so pleased :’) anyway, i’ll shut up now. enjoy.

Anna had been Queen for a few weeks, but those weeks hadn’t been peaceful. She had so much to say, and never the time to say it. Until, one night, it all comes out, and suddenly, Elsa is faced with a horrible reality: her sister isn’t okay.

XXX

All she could hear was the sound of ice cracking and shifting. The sounds echoed throughout the ancient glacier; it was deafening. Only barely could the sound of footsteps be heard as she made her way across the ice. She knew it was too late. She was shivering; terrified— she’d never felt the cold before. Her hands were so cold, she could barely move her fingers. Her hair had turned white and her skin was beginning to frost over. Is this the end? 

She had to do this. It’s what’s right. It has to be. This voice had been calling her for months; it was time to find out the truth. She could’ve told her sister. She should have told her sister. But she was afraid of frightening her. Afraid of bringing more trouble into her life. 

That didn’t work. Anna had to know these things. She had to. She couldn’t function otherwise. Her anxiety wouldn’t allow it. Elsa knew this, and yet, she kept another secret. 

It would’ve been fine—Anna was understanding. It all would have worked out, but then Elsa did the unthinkable.

=======

CHAPTER 8

=======

“Are you sure that I won’t damage it with the spikes of my boots?” Worried Anna.

Elsa looked down to Anna’s feet and saw how careful she was when she stepped. She chuckled. “It’s gonna be alright. It’s a good thing Kristoff gave you those mountain boots. I’ll fill the holes if you make some, don’t worry.”

“I don’t want to ruin the deco”, smiled Anna, looking around.

She was constantly exhaling smoke, which highlighted the fact that she had been jaw-dropping since they entered Ahtohallan an hour ago. The redhead’s wondering eyes were sparkling with amazement, looking up, down, around, admiring every little detail of the glacier, and every detail that Elsa had added in the walls, every light the magic ice had, every layer that made Ahtohallan.

“This place is really huge.”

“You’ve only seen a third of it so far.” Smiled Elsa.

“Really? Waow.”

“This place is ancestral. Several millennia old. I think I could spend each minute of my life trying to see all of it in every detail and still miss some.”

“It’s so beautiful.”

“I think so too.” Smiled the blonde.

They had arrived to a pit, which Elsa usually crossed by jumping on pillars for fun, so she crafted a stair case for her sister and her to go down.

“So it goes lower and lower…” Noted Anna.

Elsa saluted her cleverness. She liked how Anna always was more brilliant than it looked. “Yes. The more we go in the past, the deeper it gets.”

“I see. It’s both a metaphor and literal.”

Her voice echoed in the tunnel they were walking in hand in hand, and Anna had fun with the sounds.

“ECHO! ECHOOO!” 

She suddenly stopped. “Wait, this place isn’t going to crumble, no?“

Elsa cackled with laughter. “No. It’s very solid, trust me.”

“Phew.” Exhaled Anna. Then she resumed to her cute game of echo.

And her giggling voice instantly vanished the minute they arrived in a room with giant pillars, and a triangular entrance at the end. There were four lozenges with the elements symbols on them, and Anna forgot to breathe for a second because of how gorgeous it was. Elsa chuckled when the word ‘gorgeous.’ escaped her younger’s lips.

“You like it?”

“Those pillars… That must have taken you forever to put them in place…”

Elsa smiled. “Only a few seconds, actually. I just moved them around.”

Anna stared at her like the goddess she was to her eyes. “Is there anything that you can’t do?”

The Fifth Spirit smiled at the compliment, and gently nudged her forward.

“Make you go faster, for instance. Hurry up, I want you to arrive to the memories room before your face gets completely numb by the cold.”

Anna nodded. The temperature in this room already felt like a strong winter in Arendelle, and she could only imagine worse for what was coming.

She passed the triangular hole, almost breaking her neck as she looked at how big it was when she stepped in, and she gasped when she saw what was on the other side. 

If there is one word to describe this beautiful, heartfelt and loving chapter, it’s cathartic. A cathartic moment in Anna’s life where all of her deepest fears were put up on Ahtohallan"s walls. Anna’s fears and doubts must have been at such a fever pitch that this scene with Elsa, privately in the dome, was needed. It allowed Anna to cry, sob, and bawl out all of the pent up emotion and fear in one deeply emotional release.

Just like The emotional flood that broke the ice dam around Elsa’s heart in Frozen 1 that cleansed the fear and junk of 13 years, this emotional flood cleansed Anna from not only the weeks before in this story, but also cleaned out everything else still remaining in Anna’s heart and soul from the end of Frozen 2. Anna needed this catharsis. They will always have each other, no matter where life takes them, no matter if together or apart, they will have each other.

I know I vowed silence on main but come on, I think even CRWBY make a joke about this coincidence

ELSA MADE ME CRY

This scene... this song... THIS brought me to tears because I knew what would happen and I finally was so overcome with how proud I am of my Snow Queen that fucking lost it. The water works started as the music began and they kept going, with sniffles kicking in as she got closer to her truth.

The reason why I’m sharing this is because watching Frozen, I never cried. Not when Anna died, nothing. I loved the movie but never got emotional enough to shed a tear. The Broadway musical did make me tear up thanks to Patti and Caissie’s delivery toward the end of the show. So going into Frozen 2, I was hoping it would be powerful enough to make me cry. Because that’s when I would know it was a great film. And it did. I have been following Elsa’s journey for over five years now and seeing her just... come into her own and find the answers... that was so beautiful and left my heart bursting with pride. She has come so far and I have nothing but joy for her.

I’m sure you did not ask for this but it made me think so bear with me for a sec. lol

I think we elsanna fans like to play with the idea that Anna and Elsa are color-coded as a romantic pairing and that’s fun and true but now with Frozen 2 we see that they’ve being given new colors and so their coding changed as well. There are even some people pointing out how they’re playing out a more “yin & yang” vibe. But what does it mean?

In order to comprehend their changes I took to Tvtropes to help me better characterize each of their phases. 

1. “Red Index/Blue Index”

In Frozen 1 and most of Frozen 2 Elsa and Anna are color coded as the Blue/Red (purple-ish) dynamic duo we see in this image. According to TvTropes, this means: 

“There’s just something about red and blue, the way these two colors complement each other but also seem to oppose each other. Since they contrast so well, they seem to be paired together in some form more than any other two non-gray scale colors: hot and cold, red team and blue team, red ribbon (2nd place) and blue ribbon (1st place). And this leads to their inevitable contrast in symbolism […]”

Also, in the Red Oni/Blue Oni section: 

“This trope is about two individuals (or occasionally, factions or civilizations) that are significantly linked together somehow (such as through a rivalry, friendship, being siblings, co-workers, competitors, etc.) that have differing personalities and, with it, often different approaches to the world in general, especially whatever they might be competing in/for/over.”

In both F1 and F2 they are represented in these colors. The “hot vs. cold” metaphor is even used in Olaf’s song “In Summer”, to indicate how they are opposites and yet complementary forces, and how he views both of them due to being a result of their creation. Also both the red ribbon (2nd) place and blue ribbon (1st) place play a part in there, indicating their places in life and the line of ascension to the throne (more on it later). 

All in all, this color-coding indicated their conflicting (in the beginning of F1) and complementary (F2) colors and approaches to life, with Elsa being more reserved and introverted and Anna being more assertive and adventurous. We saw how in F1 this color-coding meant that their arcs’s main goal was to overcome their differences and reunite in the end, as long lost siblings who just found love and comfort in each other’s presence after years of separation. That’s good and it fits the sibling narrative (canon) and the fanon shipping of them (elsanna) we saw after F1. 

Btw, this is my favorite spin of this trope: “Fire/Ice Duo: Since Fire Is Red and ice is generally light blue”

Bc I’d have loved if they gave Anna fire powers in F2 and made it even more of a romantic coded-pairing. So easy to ship.  

Back to the analysis tho, I was thinking to myself that my favorite aspect of F2 is how much elsanna we saw in it, totally wearing my shipper’s goggles, of course. 

But it’s important to point out why we see so much of them: because The Creators words were right and Elsa and Anna’s relationship is the main focus of the narrative, playing an important role in explaining later developments (like the “bridge”, as they told us later).

I am still of the opinion that this was a weak script and they could have done many things differently, not to mention better. However, now that I think of the main reason why i liked Elsa and Anna’s story together I see that it’s bc the creators had the right idea in mind: developing their relationship into something that would support both of their character changes later, while still keeping them together and strengthening their bond.

I’m not saying they did it well, i’m just saying that now that i see it, it sounds like a good idea (and even better shipping material, if you ask me) and that they really took them from one point to the other. 

Let me explain. They were coded before as Red and Blue, but after the changes in F2 they are now color-coded as:

2.  Light/Darkness juxtaposition. 

sauce

This new color-coding can mean many things for characters, mostly pointing out at the broody type/sunny type of relationship I don’t think they actually embody anymore (even so, Elsa would be seen as the broody type but she’s in light colors now so.. doesn’t fit). That makes us turn to the more mythical implications of this trope, as seen bellow:

“Darkness is the absence of light, and light cannot exist without darkness. The dichotomy between the two has been part of human storytelling for a very long time—many Creation Myths often involve light emerging from darkness, and many destruction myths involve darkness engulfing light.”

In F2 they did play with death and ressurection, with lightness (acceptance) and darkness (despair) and with mythical vs fairytale themes, but what did they settle upon for Elsa and Anna’s relationship? A narrative of epic and mythical love.

Yes.

“It can also be used in conjunction with other contrast tropes; for example, Life/Death Juxtaposition will generally have life associated with light and death with darkness. Solar and Lunar usually pairs the sun with light and the moon with darkness (due to its association with night). Chinese philosophy associates this with Fire/Water Juxtaposition, where the yin is associated with darkness and water, and the yang with fire and light. Light and dark can easily be treated as opposing cosmic forces.”

Wow. 

Their love for each other transcended death not once but twice.

Now that Elsa achieved goddess-like status and Anna ascended the throne (no longer representing 1st/blue and 2nd/red place, but standing as equals), it means that their character dynamic are now placed on a higher level than before too. But what could beat the True Love narrative of the first movie? A mythical tale of balancing cosmic forces, of course! 

Not only it means they’re each other’s true love, but it also means that they can’t exist without the other now at the risk of destroying the world’s balance. 

This fits nicely with the idea of The Bridge (a terrible excuse for separation but a beautiful metaphor for their love story) and how they connect the nations.. but most importantly this fits nicely with how they connect both human and spiritual realms now.

Whoa.

Now I see why Anna tells Elsa this line “our love is worthy of the great myths” by the end of Forest of Shadows. Because it is. Their love is worthy of the greatest tale of all. 

Ending shot: Elsa gallops towards Ahtohallen

Not Arendelle.

-Frozen 2 Spoilers-

I’ve heard a lot of convo on Elsa being a 30 minute horse ride from her sister based on the distance between where she was when she received Anna’s note at the end and the silhouetted location seen in the movie’s final shot.

But gather round children because that was not Arendelle, it was Atohallen.

This is largely proven by the fact Anna’s note called for “Friday night charades”, not “charades tonight”, insinuating that today is not Friday and therefore there is no need for her to begin her journey to Arendelle unless it takes 24 hours to Jesus-horse across the water to the kingdom.

And this further insinuates that she doesn’t live with the Northuldra exclusively. She spends time with them as well as on the glacier, Ahtohallen, and in general wanders about as she pleases either alone or in the company of others, much like her fellow spirits. I love her so much.

That last look at the end? Of relief? Freedom? Delight and anticipation? 

She wasn’t going back. 

We made some rough counting on Discord of how fast Nokk can be. Forget about minutes, probably when in need they can move as fast as tsunami (around 800km/h). We could see a bit of this when Elsa and Nokk managed to surpass a flood wave when coming from Ahtohallan to Arendelle which is further north than the enchanted forest, we are not sure how far, but we see on the gif above that there is a mainland behind Elsa and Ahtohallan is in a visible distance from the shore. For an average person watching horizon from a shore it’s roughly 5km. Ahtohallan probably is a bit further because of it’s height.

“Anna, you’re the most extraordinary person I’ve ever known…I love you with all I am. Will you marry me?”