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kristannafever · 3 months

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A Snow Angel and a Substitute

Kristanna Modern AU Rated: T+ WC: 7122

~Completely self indulgent oneshot

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“Yo, Mr. B!”

Kristoff turned around right as the snowball exploded against his shoulder. His eyes narrowed at the three teenage boys who were busting a gut laughing.

“Get your asses to class!” he yelled, a smirk pulling at the side of his mouth as he brushed the snow off his jacket.

The boys grinned at him and took off running through the deep snow. Kristoff shook his head and resumed his work with the shovel. It was a crying shame their rural school never got the walks cleared in the morning in time, forcing parents and children to navigate the blinding white landscape. He’d seen his fair share of people slip and fall, not to mention that one time he took a tumble on the way to his truck after school.

More students filed off the buses, stepping around him as he resumed shoveling the snow. It was a long walkway along the front of the school to the bus loop, and he was going to have to hurry back inside to make it in time for the second bell to teach his class.

*****

“There he goes again.”

Anna looked up from where she was sitting at one of the tables in the staff break room. There were four other teachers, all ladies, looking out the window at someone. This was a new school for her and her first time substituting at it; if she knew the other teachers better, she might go see that the commotion was about.

“He’s such an angel for doing that,” one of them said.

“Every time it snows. And he always has a smile on his face,” the first one who spoke answered.

“If I wasn’t married, I would be all over him,” another woman said through a dreamy sigh.

“Ha. Get in line. Almost all of us single ladies have already tried and failed to get a date.”

Anna had no idea what they were talking about but curiosity got the better of her and she got up and approached the window. Outside was a tall man, his blond hair decorated with snowflakes, shoveling the walkways around the school.

The one who spoke first turned slightly, noticing Anna’s presence. “Oh, you’re Miss Arendelle, right? The sub for Mrs. Gleeman’s class?”

“That’s me.” She smiled. “I’m Anna.”

“I’m Tracy. Welcome to the school.” She offered her hand and Anna shook it. “You get a good look at Mr. B out there?”

“Mr. B?” Anna asked.

Tracy gave her a wicked smile. “Mr. Kristoff Bjorgman. He teaches science in the junior high wing. You’ll see once you meet him.”

Anna was certainly intrigued. She imagined she’d have a chance to bump into him since she was taking over the Junior High’s English period in the same wing for the entire month while Mrs. Gleeman recovered from knee surgery.

The rest of the teachers introduced themselves and Anna found them all to be warm and inviting. They included her in their conversation about the goings-on of the school until the first bell rang and all the women broke up to head to their classrooms.

Anna headed to the classroom that the principal had shown her when she’d arrived, and turned the corner to come face to face with a very snow-covered blond man whom she’d been looking at only moments before.

“Oh, hello…” he said, shaking snow off his hair and then brushing it off the shoulders of his coat. “You must be subbing for Mrs. G.”

Anna was immediately enamored with the pink hue of his cheeks from being out in the cold and exerting himself with the shovel. “I am,” she said with a smile. “My name is Anna.”

“Kristoff,” he said, and offered a hand. “Kids call me Mr. B.”

Anna shook it, expecting it to be cold, but instead it was delightfully warm. “Nice to meet you, Kristoff.”

He gave her a tiny smile. “Have a good morning.” Then he walked around her and straight to the classroom beside hers.

Anna paused at the door to her classroom and took a deep breath. It was always nerve-racking teaching in a new school she wasn’t familiar with, and grade seven was by far the most ruthless grade she’d ever taught for. With any luck, she’d get through the day without having a nervous breakdown.

-----

So far, the morning had gone off without too much issue. There were some rowdy boys in the class to be sure, but none of them did anything too rash beyond talking when they weren’t supposed to be. The biggest distraction of the morning happened when the classroom next to theirs erupted with noise.

Her students had been reading quietly to prepare for the book report they were going to do on their chosen book, when there was a whooshing sound, a class full of teenagers oohing and ahhing, and then ruckus laughter. It filtered through the wall with remarkable clarity.

“I can’t wait for science,” whispered one of the boys in the back to his friend.

“Me either,” his friend responded. “Mr. B is the best!”

That brought hushed murmurs of agreement from other students and within seconds they were all talking. Anna looked at the clock, and with only five minutes left in the period, she figured she’d let them be. In the meantime, she took the opportunity to look up this Mr. B on line, only to find that he had no presence there beyond being listed as a teacher on the school’s website.

The bell rang and the kids filed out to head to their next class. Not long after the grade eights filed in, talking and laughing. Anna had read over their curriculum and was prepared. That class went a little quicker since they were discussing their upcoming biography projects and Anna had to answer a lot of questions before the bell rang for lunch.

Anna lingered a moment to gather her notes for the grade nine’s she would be teaching after lunch, then grabbed her bag and headed for the staff room. Walking passed Mr. B’s classroom, she noticed him out of the corner of her eye. Pausing, she turned towards the open door and leaned against the frame.

“Do all the teachers eat lunch in their classrooms?”

His head remained still but his eyes looked up from the book he was reading, a sandwich paused half way to his mouth in his other hand. He blinked at her and finally brough his head up, setting his lunch down. “Um, no. But I do.”

“Oh?” Anna cocked her head to the side. “Is everyone here that insufferable?”

A smirk played out on his lips and he set his book down, looking away from her eyes. “No, nothing like that. I just like peace and quiet.”

Anna nodded slowly. “I get it. Sometimes I need a breather from all the talking and listening to the students.”

Kristoff looked back and smiled at her but didn’t look like he was going to say anything in response, so Anna told him to have a good lunch and headed to the staff room.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Kristoff was out there again the next morning, shoveling the snow that had fallen overnight. The school district crews had been there in the afternoon to clear the accumulation from the day, but everything was once again under a blanket of snow.

Anna walked into the staff room to a nearly identical scene from the morning before, only this time where were five other female teachers lined up at the window. She didn’t bother to join them since it seemed a little juvenile. Not that she didn’t understand; he truly was a very handsome man, but why bother ogling when he wasn’t interested. Anna certainly would have joined him if he’d offered her to eat lunch with him yesterday. Only he hadn’t, so it was fair to assume there was no interest for her either.

She put her lunch in the fridge and headed to her classroom. There were already a few students milling around in it, and she got everything set up for the day. Then the junior high door opened and shut and the sound of someone stomping boots on the mat came down the hallway. Kristoff breezed by her open door a moment later on his way to his classroom without sparing her so much as a glance.

“Yo, Mr. B!” came through the wall a moment later, and the sound of kids bombarding him with comments and questions was drowned out by the second bell.

The day progressed much like the day before, only with the other grade seven and eight classes. Then the lunch bell rang and Anna headed to the staff room, glancing briefly in Kristoff’s classroom to find it empty. As soon as she entered the staff area, she could see why. He was digging around in the fridge, bent at the waist, with every single pair of female eyes staring at his wonderfully shaped back side.

Anna fought with a smile and the urge to break out with laughter. These women were worse than love struck teenagers.

Kristoff pulled out a brown paper bag and shut the fridge as he turned in her direction. He almost slammed right into her, and had to stumble back a step. “Oh, sorry. Didn’t mean to almost run you over.”

“No worries.” Anna smiled at him.

The side of his mouth curved up in response but he walked around her and said, “Have a good lunch.”

“You too,” Anna said to his back as he left the room.

Silence stretched on for a moment when Tracy piped up. “He is so fine.”

A male teacher sitting at a table guffawed at her comment. “Put it back in your pants, you cougar. He ain’t interested.”

“I know that,” she snapped at him. “Doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate that fine form. Not to mention that perfect ass.”

Some of the ladies in the room giggled while the male teacher rolled his eyes with comedic drama that told her the ribbing was all in good fun. Anna turned away from the group and grabbed her lunch and found a spot to eat while conversations turned away from the attractiveness of co-workers.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Kristoff never had to shovel the next morning, which disappointed him just a little. He liked doing it, getting out in the cold fresh air and making life a little better for the parents and students. One of the gym teachers used to do it, but the guy only shoveled the entryway to the front doors, so when Kristoff got to the shovel before him one morning, he never made a move to grab it again. It was for the better. This way the entre walkway was free and clear of deep snow, and Kristoff always got the de-icer to sprinkle if there was ice left on the walks.

One of the good things about not having to shovel at least was not seeing a bunch of faces staring at him from the window of the staff room. Some of those ladies were relentless.

At least it was hump-day and Kristoff was excited to dazzle the kids with another experiment. He put his lunch in the fridge, ignoring the stares, and went to his classroom to organize his day. As the kids filtered in, he was greeted warmly.

He tried not to listen to much of what they were saying, especially when he heard a swear word or two fall out of their mouths, but one of the boys talking caught his attention when he mentioned ‘Miss A’.

“… is so awesome. She’s so chill. I like her.”

“Dude, she’s hot!”

“Jackson!” Kristoff warned, not bringing his eyes up from the quiz he was grading. “Inappropriate.”

“Sorry, Mr. B,” Jackson responded sheepishly.

Kristoff went back to his work. He understood these kids had hormones fucking up their brains at this age. Hell, he’d received googly eyes from plenty of the girls over his years teaching. It was natural for them to feel those feelings. And of course, not one of them ever acted on them. Which sadly, couldn’t be said for all teachers.

He’d worked with a guy before who’d crossed the line with one of his students. Kristoff laid him out with one punch when he found out, and got him fired on the spot. The girl was consenting and technically eighteen, but it was still so fucking wrong.

He saw a flash of colour scurry past his open door and met Anna’s eyes for one brief second as she hurried down the hall. Kristoff stared at nothing for a moment, regretting not thinking of something better to say to her when she’d stopped by his classroom that first day. Truth is, she was hot. And he was instantly captivated by her eyes and her easygoing smile.

The noise level in the room was getting out of hand so Kristoff had to rein in the students and begin class. The morning flew by, and before he knew it, the lunch bell was ringing and he was swiftly left alone in his classroom. He hurried to grab his lunch and managed to get out before too many people came in, and was once again alone in the solitude of his classroom a moment later.

Mid way through unpacking his sandwiches, a familiar voice came from his open door.

“How do you do it?” she asked.

Kristoff looked at her, those clear blue, intelligent, eyes, and felt a jolt of longing. He hadn’t really ever felt an attraction like this before, and it went well beyond her looks.

“How do I do what?”

“Get them to love you so much,” she said with mock exasperation as she took a couple steps into the room and threw her hands up dramatically. “Those kids adore you.”

He felt his cheeks warm instantly, and shrugged to her. “I just like teaching science.”

She shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. “Nuh uh. It’s more than that. You have a natural talent for reaching these young people. They look up to you, and they listen to you, and most importantly, they learn from you.”

The heat in his face deepened and he had no idea what to say.

She sighed. “We all had those teachers growing up. You remember, right? The one, or if you’re lucky, two, that really make a difference. The one’s that leave an impression. You are one of those. How do you do it?”

Kristoff was at a complete loss for words. No one had ever said anything so flattering to him before. He was further taken with her.

“Well, I’ll leave you to it then.” She uncrossed her arms and turned back towards the door.

He had a moment of panic, wanting this conversation to keep going only his mind was still drawing a blank. She was almost out of sight when words finally came to him and came out with halting awkwardness. “I don’t really know how… I just love science.”

She turned back and looked at him with curiosity. “You really don’t have like, a secret, or something?”

He shook his head. “No. Not at all. In fact, I’m actually a really quiet person. I just… like talking about science.”

Anna stared at him, making him a little uncomfortable. “So you’re basically a unicorn,” she said finally.

The absurdity of the statement made him laugh. “What?”

She waved her hand in front of her face. “Never mind. Just means you’re a rare individual.” Then she turned and disappeared out the door before he could utter another word.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

He was tired as hell, and shoveling the dump of snow that had fallen overnight was hard work. By the time he stomped his snow-covered boots on the mat and changed into his school sneakers, he was ready to call it a day and go home. Only the day was only just starting.

The reason he couldn’t sleep, appeared rushing to her classroom as he approached his door, and she threw him one of those breathtaking smiles as she passed him.

All morning, he struggled to concentrate, leaving his kids quietly passing silent glances at one another. He finally had more than he could take and told them to just take out their textbooks and read over the material in their unit to study for the upcoming test next week. While they silently worked, he stared at his computer and tried to make himself work.

He almost dozed off and the bell ran, startling him, which was embarrassingly noticed by almost all of his students. They filtered out of the class throwing him questioning glances and his next class sauntered in. He managed to hold it together a bit better, then he looked at the clock, realized how much time was left, and told them to do the same as he did with his other class.

Miss A… Anna… was thoroughly under his skin.

By the time the lunch bell rang, it felt like eight hours had passed instead of four. He went to the corner of his desk where he’d thrown his lunch bag when he came in. He was too tired to put it in the fridge and he pulled the items out without really thinking about it and started to eat his first sandwich.

Then she was at his door again.

“It’s noticeably quiet over here today.”

“Pardon?” he asked, his tired mind trying to understand.

“Your classes are kind of loud,” she said, walking into the room and right up to his desk.

He swallowed the sudden thickness in his throat and maintained eye contact with her. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be a disruption.”

She gave him a brilliant smile. “That’s not what I’m saying.” Anna grabbed a nearby student chair and pulled it towards his desk, sitting across from him. “I just mean the kids seem a little less upbeat today. And… so do you.”

Did that mean she had been watching him while he was shoveling? Did she notice that his enthusiasm was not what it was at the beginning of the week?

“Just tired…” was all he could think of to say.

She stared back at him with eyes that were more knowing than anyone else he’d ever met. “I get it. We all have those days. That’s why the kids seem quiet. They feed off your energy, and when you don’t have it, they worry.”

He frowned. “You think they worry about me?”

“Of course they do! That’s all I heard murmured when my next class came in. They come straight from you to me.”

“They noticed,” he said more to himself than Anna as his gaze fell to his desk. He was a little taken aback, as this had never really happened to him before. Upon reflection, he supposed he was pretty constant with his attitude. No wonder the kids were thrown off.

She nodded. “Don’t worry, no one is saying anything bad. Just that you look tired.”

He looked back into her eyes. “Yeah, I am tired.”

“Why?”

Shit, if his tiredness was throwing his kids off, her question as to why certainty threw him off. “Just a restless night,” he said carefully.

“That’s too bad.” She frowned. “Everything okay? You need to talk about something?”

The fact that the reason he couldn’t sleep was asking him why, was amusing his tired brain. “No, it’s all good. Just couldn’t stop thinking.”

“Ah, I have those nights once in a while.” She leaned back in the chair. “Definitely no fun.”

He shook his head slowly, watching her eyes as they flicked to the clock and then back to his desk, before finally coming up and meeting his gaze. It was all over her face; she was going to get up and leave him to his solitude and join the masses in the break room. All he had to do was say the words. She stood and it came out of his mouth.

“If you want, you can bring your lunch here and we could talk.”

A slow smile spread across her face. “Sure. I’ll be right back.”

Kristoff watched her leave the room and caught her eyes as she looked back at him. That was a good sign.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Anna had a restless night, and now she had a better understanding of why Kristoff had looked tired the day before.

The talk they had over their short lunch, had opened up something between them. It was there, and real, and she could feel it. Kristoff could too, she could tell. His eyes bored into hers as they talked, taking her in in the way she was taking him in with hers. And then the bell rang way too soon.

Anna went back to her room feeling fluttery and light. She even lingered a moment after class, and waited until she saw him walk past her room, looking in and smiling. She’d called out that she’d walk to the parking lot with him, and he waited while she put on her coat and grabbed her purse. The talk was brief, but she was suddenly desperate to find out everything about him.

And then he was on her mind all night long.

The next morning, it hadn’t snowed and the forecast was for clear skies, so Anna went into her classroom early, not surprised one little bit that Kristoff was in his. She stopped by his door and noticed there was only one kid there so far, reading quietly at his desk. She was hoping for an empty classroom but this was going to have to do and the student in question was a quiet one. Not that this wasn’t going to start a rumor.

She approached the desk where he was going through some papers. “Morning, Kristoff. How are you?”

He looked up quickly and have her an even quicker smile. “Morning! I’m Good, how about you, Anna?”

“I’m good. A little tired, but you know… pretty good.” She suddenly felt a little flustered in his warm brown gaze.

“Hmm. Didn’t sleep well?”

“Not really.”

“Seems to be going around.”

Anna did not miss what he meant by that and by the way he was looking at her. “How about you? You catch up on your rest?”

His smile widened and he chuckled low. “Went to bed at eight, so yeah. Got nine hours in.”

“That’s great! I imagine your class will be lively again today.”

“With the experiment I have planned to show the kids, we’ll definitely be disturbing you.”

Anna grinned at him. “Wonderful. I love hearing the kids have fun.”

“If it gets too loud though, please let me know. Mrs. G complained to me all the time.”

“I promise it won’t,” she said, noticing a few kids filtering into the class behind her. If she was going to go for it, she better get it out now. “Have a fun morning, and if you want, you can join me in my classroom today for lunch?”

One eyebrow twitched up ever so slightly. “Sure. I’d love to.”

-----

Despite Anna’s attempt to keep things low key, she was already hearing kids talk rumors. And it had only taken a matter of hours for the gossip to spread. The kids were apparently tickled pink with the idea of Miss A and Mr. B getting together and going on a date. Now all Anna had to do was get Kristoff to ask her out on one.

Kristoff showed up for lunch before all the kids had left the room, which she knew would further stoke the flames of the chatter. Not that she really cared.

He asked her all about how she got into teaching and she had a great time talking to him, then the bell rang and they finished teaching out their day and walking to the parking lot together again. He bid her a good night but did not ask her out. It had disappointed her, but Kristoff seemed kind of laid-back to her, like he just rolled with it, so maybe he just had no presence of mind to rush things. Unlike Anna, who had already pictured kissing him, among other things, about a dozen times.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Kristoff parked in the staff lot and lingered in his truck a moment. There was no snow to shovel, so no real reason to hurry into the school so early. That, and Anna’s car wasn’t there yet.

He was going to ask her out on a date, of that he was certain. What he wasn’t so certain about was whether or not it was a good idea. He’d already heard the kids whisper about them, and it bothered him. He was very careful to maintain professionalism in the workplace, and while there were absolutely no rules about dating a staff member, the fact that the kids were so into it was weird to him.

He decided to let it go when he saw Anna’s car pull of the main road and made a show of slowly grabbing his bag and getting out of the truck so it wasn’t obvious that he had waited for her. She parked beside him with a bright smile while he shut his door and lingered. Her head popped up over the roof of the car a moment later.

“Morning, Kristoff. Walk in with me?”

He smiled. “Sure.”

“Just a sec…” She disappeared back into her car to gather her things.

“No problem.” It took her a moment, making him smile a little more. Finally, she gathered her bag and her purse and shut her door.

“TGIF, am I right?” She laughed, falling in step beside him.

“Definitely. Any plans for the weekend?”

“Eh, not really. Call my sister on Sunday, but that’s about it. Maybe some Christmas shopping. I like to get that done early.”

So did Kristoff. In fact, he was already done.

“How about you?” she asked, as they rounded the bus loop and headed towards the front doors.

“Oh, not too much. Go to my folks for dinner on Sunday.” He took a quick breath and went for it. “Maybe take you out for dinner tomorrow night?”

Anna stopped in her tracks only feet from the front door and Kristoff resisted the urge to look at the staff window to see who was spying on them. That was the whole reason he wanted to ask her when they were alone. The gossip among the staff was sometimes worse than the children.

She smiled at him in a way he hadn’t yet seen, and it made his stomach do little flips. “Sure, Kristoff. I would love that.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

On Monday morning, Anna was accosted by Tracy in the staff room.

The woman had her hands on her hips. “So you and Mr. B went on a date this weekend?”

Anna bristled at the stern look from the older woman. “How in the hell did you hear about that?” She’d been careful not to let the kids know about their date plans, and no one had been around when he’d asked her.

“Janice, the kindergarten teacher, was at the restaurant that night and saw the two of you canoodling over dinner.”

“So? Two consenting adults going on a date isn’t a crime.”

“It is when the man is that fine,” Tracy said, arching and eyebrow and giving Anna and evil smile. “Good for you, girl.”

Anna smiled and giggled nervously with no idea of how to respond to that.

“I’m just joking with you, Anna. Relax.” Tracy left the staff room laughing to herself and Anna’s cheeks were on fire.

She quickly grabbed another coffee and rushed to her classroom, stopping briefly by Kristoff’s open door to smile at him. Their date, had been magical. Kristoff was wonderful, kind, honest, intelligent, and sexy as all get out. He was the man she’d been looking for her entire life. The sparks flew, and yeah, she supposed they were canoodling over dinner.

Then Kristoff dropped her off at her place, declined the invite inside, then kissed her in the most wonderful, yet chaste way, leaving her weak in the knees. She was already head over heels about him and could not wait to go on their next date. If all went well, they’d be spending more of the weekend together than just their Friday night.

*****

Kristoff went on with explaining the science projects that the kids were going to create and test, but his mind was completely occupied with thoughts of Anna and how he already knew that he was going to fall deeply in love with her.

She ignited things in his soul that he didn’t even know were there. Time with her was some of the best of his entire life. And the best part was, he could feel the same kind of energy coming from Anna. She had wanted him to come into her place when he dropped her off, she made that very clear. But Kristoff was raised with respect and somehow, he managed to decline despite what his body was telling him. They were going out again this Friday and he knew she was going to ask again for him to come in after their date, and while he planned to say no, wanting to hold out for the third, he had to wonder if he’d have enough strength to deny her again.

SIX MONTHS LATER

It turned out that Kristoff did not possess the strength to be able to deny her again, and after their second date, him and Anna made love for the first time. They were inseparable after that.

Anna had been set to leave the school when Mrs. Gleeman returned, only to be informed that the healing was taking its toll on the much older woman, and she’d need another three to four weeks of recovery. Kristoff was sad that Mrs. G (even as grouchy as she always was to him) was having a hard time, but happy that meant Anna would be at the school a little longer. And with the thought of her eventually leaving the school looming in his mind, he asked her to move in with him only five weeks after their first date.

His home had never felt like home until Anna had moved in. She made his life so much better, and they did absolutely everything together. Except, at school it was business, and they kept the fact that they were so involved, from everyone there. Even Tracy had stopped pestering Anna after not getting the information she wanted. The kids still talked, because Kristoff and Anna still took turns eating lunch in each other’s classrooms, but with no ammo besides a healthy friendship, the murmurs soon ceased.

More time went on and Anna had been getting genuinely depressed when it was looking like she’d have to move onto another school to substitute at, when low and behold, Mrs. G showed up one morning to meet with the principal and Anna.

Mrs. Gleeman’s daughter, lifelong friends with one of the mothers who Anna taught, had commented about her improvement in her child’s grades and the fact that she was genuinely having a better time at school. Apparently, Anna’s sharp ears, zero tolerance for bullying and taunting, and constant encouragement to be kind and to help one another, had put an end to her friend’s daughter getting picked on. Now she even had a couple of good friends and raved about what a great teacher Miss A was. And apparently, they were not the first parent to comment on the positive changes in their children.

By the end of that meeting, with Mrs. Gleeman’s plans to retire early and her encouragement, Anna had a permanent job teaching junior high English. She had thanked the older woman and the principal profusely, and went back to her classroom weeping with happiness. Her students, shocked to see her in such a state, inquired to her emotion. Kristoff had never heard such a ruckus roar of approval coming from her classroom as she told them she wasn’t going anywhere. By the end of that day, it was all the kids who entered his class could talk about.

Then, the inevitable happened. Him and Anna were out bowling on a date in town, when one of their students happened to be there at the same time. Neither he or Anna had noticed the kid until after a bunch of PDA, and by then it was much too late. They decided to pretend the student wasn’t there and went about their date. And as they expected, the following Monday, tongues were wagging among the kids, and they had not stopped for over a week. Therefore, by that second Friday since that date, Kristoff had an idea to put that to rest once and for all.

He had to put his plan together quickly, informing the principal and other junior high teachers for approval before getting the most important part of his plan. He was a little nervous, having only been with Anna for six months, but knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that they were meant for each other.

The morning finally came, and all the junior high students were called into the gym to address the rumors that had been flying around for the past couple weeks. Kristoff watched them all file in, shaking with nerves. He couldn’t believe he was about to do this, but having Anna stand by his side, filled him with confidence.

“How could they not have given us a heads up that we had to address this?” she asked him, leaning over to speak low as the remaining kids and teachers came into the gym. She’d been informed by the principal at the same time as her class that they were all about to meet to talk about two teachers rumored to be in a relationship.

“Uh, actually, this was my idea.”

Anna’s head snapped in his direction and she looked at him with wide questioning eyes. “And you didn’t tell me?”

Kristoff pursed his lips but didn’t answer her. The door to the gym swung shut with the last teacher ushering the kids in and he decided to just go for it.

“Hey, hey!” He held up his hands. “Quiet down.” The kids were too excited and the volume didn’t drop one bit. “Quiet down, please!” he said, louder, repeating himself a few times, and finally the murmurs died down.

He spared a glance at Anna standing beside him, her cheeks alight with embarrassment and looking over all the kids to the back of the room. He felt a pang of regret, like this was suddenly a really bad idea, then he looked back at the kids and found renewed strength.

“I’ve had several students mention something to me,” he started. “Raise your hand if you’ve heard a rumor about Miss A and I.”

Every single student raised their hands and started to giggle and talk. The noise level took off again and Kristoff had to speak over the din. “Hands down. Okay! Hands down, quiet please.”

The students all quieted and Kristoff resumed his speech. “There is a rumor going around that Miss A and I are dating. So I think it’s about time that we address that rumor, and confirm that the answer is… yes, Miss A and I are dating.”

The kids freaked out. They all shouted with genuine glee and Kristoff looked over to see Anna smiling despite the fact that her face was now crimson. She looked back at him still shocked and wondering what in the hell he was doing given the fact that he had not mentioned this to her beforehand, but also looking a bit more relaxed about the whole ordeal.

It took him a moment to settle the kids back down, all the while his heart hammered away in his chest. Once the students were finally settled again, he went for it.

“The truth is, we are a little more than dating…” The murmurs began so Kristoff talked over them to get it out and not prolong this any more than it already had been. “Because I am completely in love with her.”

The kids gasped and started to cheer again and Anna had started to get emotional at the clear delight and support from their students. She wiped at her glistening eyes as she looked back at Kristoff, and he raised his hand, waiting a moment to get enough of the chatter down to finish this.

“Quiet, please,” he said loudly, his hand slipping into his pocket. “Quiet down!” The noise died and Kristoff took one last nervous swallow, slowly turning to Anna and sinking to his knee. “I was wondering if Miss A, would like to become Mrs. B?”

Anna’s hands flew to her mouth as the gym erupted with excited screaming. All Kristoff could do was look at her in question as his words would be drown out by the excited teenagers. She nodded an enthusiastic yes before offering him her hand to slip the ring onto. As soon as it was in place he was up on his feet, pulling her into a protective hug while the students carried on their joy for their teachers. He knew she was going to be shocked, made evident to him in the way she was shaking in his arms, but he knew she would appreciate his plan.

And she did. Later that night, after a celebratory dinner, she confided in him how wonderful his gesture was to include their kids, and how special she felt.

Then they made love and fell asleep in each other’s arms.

THE NEXT WINTER

“Yo, Mrs. B!”

Anna turned around and ducked anticipating what was about to happen. The snowball sailed over her head and she gave the now eighth graders a stern look, even though she couldn’t help but smile. “Get your butts to class, gentlemen!”

The boys laughed and took off to their door with Kristoff chuckling beside her. “Seem’s like I’m just chopped liver to them now,” he said. “Those snowballs used to have my title on them.”

Anna laughed. “Don’t worry. It’s the first snowfall of the season. I am sure the next one will have Mr. all over it.”

Kristoff hummed his amusement and him and Anna continued to shovel the walks. They decided to do it together since it would get done faster, and Kristoff mentioned to her that he was genuinely relived not to see a bunch of faces watching him from the staff room window anymore.

The whole junior high body was invited to their wedding ceremony. Not to it proper, of course that would have been crazy, but to watch the live stream if they were so inclined. After the first couple days of their honeymoon, Anna had checked and was surprised to see how many people had actually watched it. There were tons of wonderful and supportive comments.

Those first two weeks of newlywedded bliss exploring the fjords of Norway, had been the best of Anna’s entire life aside from the day she married her best friend. Kristoff was the most wonderful person she had ever met in her life, and she was thankful to be able to call him her husband.

They finished shoveling and returned to their classrooms to begin preparing for the day, when the principal made an announcement that he would like all the junior high students to assemble in the gym. Anna ushered her kids out of the classroom and received a concerned and questioning look from Kristoff when she met him in the hallway.

She shrugged her shoulders and kept back the smile that was fighting to form her lips. Anna had truly adored the way that Kristoff had proposed, but still vowed to herself to get him back.

The teachers gathered in the corner while the kids huddled together, sitting on the floor and waiting for whatever they were about to be told. The principal came in, greeted everyone, and got the ball rolling.

“Quiet down, please,” he said, gesturing with his hands for the kids to settle. “I’ve called you all in her to receive an announcement from one of our teachers. Mrs. Bjorgman, you have the floor.”

Kristoff’s head whipped in her direction and he stared at her with shock, so Anna decided to get it out while she still had the nerves.

“Well, I have to say that I am going to be taking a leave of absence.”

The students started to murmur with concern and Kristoff went so far as to reach out and grab her hand.

“Anna?” he asked quietly, his tone full of worry.

Anna looked back at him, gave hum a gentle smile, and returned to the kids. “I will be taking leave of my position at the end of April.”

Hands shot up with questions and Anna felt Kristoff squeeze her hand firmly but did not look over at him yet. She picked Brie, since she was sitting in the front row. “Yes, Brie?”

The grade sevener frowned. ““Are you coming back?”

“Yes, of course.”

The students started to murmur louder and Anna picked another kid with their hand up. “Yes, Brandon?”

“How long will you be gone?”

The students quieted down immediately to hear the answer. “A year.”

More hands shot up and Anna felt Kristoff squeeze her hand again. She picked another student. “Yes, Samantha?”

“Why are you leaving?”

Anna finally looked at Kristoff, and his expression was in awe. She knew he was too smart not to figure out what she was going to say next, and she smiled at him, eyes welling up with happy tears.

She turned back to the kids. “Mr. B and I are going to have a baby.”

Much like Kristoff’s proposal, the kids cheered for them, and Anna let the tears come as Kristoff pulled her into a protective hug.

“Anna, I am so happy,” Kristoff said, his voice wavering with emotion. “I can’t believe you’ve kept this a secret for four months.”

Anna laughed, not at all surprised Kristoff had done the math. She pulled back to look at his glassy eyes and happy smile. “Well, I had to get you back for that surprise proposal. So… surprise!”

He chuckled, and pulled her into another hug, the volume of the kids rising as they began talking excitedly. “This is the absolute best surprise,” he said in her ear. “Thank you, Anna.”

Anna hugged him back tighter. Her heart was happy and full, and she could not wait to meet their first baby in the spring.

#A Snow Angel and a Substitute #Cee wrote this mess #Kristoff #Anna #Kristanna #Kristanna modern au #oneshot #meet cute #end half is inspired by a repost of a cute teacher proposal on TikTok - Kudos to that op #also yeah the title is kinda stupid but I wrote this really quick wanted to share and honestly can't come up with anything else LOL

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nehswritesstuffs · 8 months

Text

banish every gaslight; let clarity shine - Part 8

Okay, I'm back! Hope everyone's ready to cry. :D

Part 1 [FFN/AO3] - Part 2 [FFN/AO3] - Part 3 [FFN/AO3] - Part 4 [FFN/AO3] - Part 5 [FFN/AO3] - Part 6 [FFN/AO3] - Part 7 [FFN/AO3]

As one sibling back home tries to make the best of things, the other two realize exactly what lengths Cora-san is willing to go for them. [3433 words; AU where there is a Third Corazón, whose existence makes Law’s life hell]

Baby 5 hid the Den Den Mushi in her hoodie as she made her way out of headquarters and over to the garbage dump. Although it was her job to stay behind that time, she wanted to make sure there was nothing that could watch or listen to her, just in case. It was really one of Law’s hoodies that she was wearing, her having started to wear them with him not around to protest. She found a good spot and took the snail out, giving it a piece of lettuce before making the call.

“Crackers.” The snail made the person on the other end look so tired. Why was he so tired?

“Cookies,” Baby 5 said. A moment’s pause and the snail peered at her.

“A… child…?”

“Um… I don’t know who you are, but Cora-san told me to call you,” she explained. “He said he needs me to tell you whenever the Young Master leaves Spider Miles. He left.”

“Cora-san…?”

“Yeah.” Her hands trembled as she held the snail in one hand and the receiver in the other. “I’m not allowed to ask questions. I’m not allowed to lie to you. I’m not allowed to let the others know I call you.”

The man—Baby 5 knew it was a man on the other end, because he sounded like Lao G if he was nicer and more tired—regarded this carefully. “Do you know who I am? Any idea?”

“I told you: no—Cora-san just told me to do this while he helps my brother and sister.”

“Does he have a snail I can contact him on?”

“No, sir. This was his only one. He said he’ll call you when he can.”

“Sounds like Rosi, alright.” The man gave a weak chuckle. “You are very brave, child. He chose well when he gave you this job.” He seemed to sigh heavily and there was the sound of papers shuffling. “Due to the unofficial shift in protocol, I am not going to ask your name. I shall refer to you as Child, and you can refer to me as Grandfather. Just keep doing this, alright? I am proud of you, Child.”

“Thank you, Grandfather.”

Baby 5 gave the man on the other end of the line the course of the Numancia Flamingo to the best of her ability before the line cut. The snail fell asleep and she held it close to her chest, trying to keep it warm as she went back to Headquarters.

What sort of people was Cora-san talking to, and why did they need that information? She put the snail back in its habitat before she went back to cleaning, wanting to make sure everything was nice and neat and orderly for the others to get back. They needed to not suspect anything.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Months began to creep by and hospitals continued to burn, while information continued to be passed along. Baby 5 made it a habit of staying behind at the base when the rest of the Family was on missions, wrapped in her brother’s sweatshirts during the day and holding her sister’s stuffed animals at night. She felt the eyes of the other Family members as they would come home to a spotless headquarters and somehow knew their suspicions. Her being alone was not normal, so why was she alone so much now? Did they know she searched through their things for information? How long would it be before they discovered that Child was passing information to Grandfather, and that it was happening via Cora-san’s old transponder snail? What would it take for her cover to be blown and what would happen when it finally happened? Would they know it was all in the name of protecting her siblings?

There was only one way to find out, unfortunately.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-

[CLASSIFIED]

Official Transcript of Military Den Den Communications – Operation: FALLEN DRAGON – File Number 01746.100059.1511.00234

Listen: I don’t have much time. There’s these five kids in Doffy’s group. Two of them are likely beyond help, but the middle three… no matter what, I need them to be saved. Whatever happens to me, you have to sa…

[INDECIPHERABLE]

She’s the one I gave the snail.

[INDECIPHERABLE]

…I know about [REDACTED] and what [REDACTED] did! Did you really think that was [REDACTED]

[INDECIPHERABLE]

Remember… it’s two girls and a boy. Raise them if I’m not there to do it. Please. I fear what Doffy will do to them if this all is blown to hell.

[INDECIPHERABLE]

They deserve so much more than this. We both know it.

[END COMMUNICATION]

-_-_-_-_-_-_-

It was very cold as Law and Lami sat huddled together on what seemed like a deserted island, waiting in the small alcove where Cora-san had told them to stay while he went somewhere. Law tried to wrap his cloak around his sister as well as himself and failed at getting more than half of her in the extra fabric.

“What do you think he’s doing?” she shivered. He tucked her head underneath his chin as coughs began to wrack her body.

“Hard saying,” he lied. He knew exactly what Cora-san was doing: trying to raid the pirate base that was on the other side of the island. Their adult had trusted him with the information in case anything went sour, because someone needed to get Lami out of there if the need arose. He had even left them with a knife, despite the fact he hoped they didn’t need to use it. “He better not be too long.”

“I want Bee-nee,” Lami sniffled. She rubbed her face in her brother’s shoulder and tried not to cry. “Why couldn’t Bee-nee come along?”

“It would be too much for Cora-san to travel with all three of us, remember?” Law said. He hugged his baby sister a bit tighter and hoped that Baby 5 had not been caught yet. “We’re gonna be okay—Cora-san will be the adult who helps.”

“You don’t believe that.”

“No… but it’s important that you do.” Lami began to sob, knowing that their time—her time specifically—was running out. “Hey, we’ll see Bee soon enough. Cora-san is gonna find that cure for us.”

“Why… why are you allowed to be sad about it, but I can’t?!” she cried. “I’m scared, Law-nii! I’m so scared!”

“I know you are, but you have to know it’s gonna be okay, no matter what,” he replied. He went back into his memory for words of comfort from before… from when they had both their parents and school and friends and… fuck… it had been a wonderful life, hadn’t it? There was something too calm about it, as though it was just the peace one felt before a storm came barreling through. Was finding their sister just the eye of the storm? Was that Cora-san? Damned if he knew. “Everything happens for a reason…”

“It’s not reasonable!” she snapped tearfully. “Don’t say things the sisters said! It doesn’t make me feel better!”

“It doesn’t make you feel better because you know they were right!” he fired back. She looked at him, her eyes puffed up from crying, and didn’t know how to respond. “They were right! I don’t know how, but they were! Do you think I like not knowing how?! Do you think I like not knowing the reason?! It’s fucked up, yeah, but what else do we have?! If none of this had happened, we would have never met Bee! Or Cora-san! We’d still be in Flevance, having never seen anything beyond her waters! Nothing changing!”

“…but we’d still have Mom and Dad! Our family! Our friends!”

“…and we could still be dead anyhow! People die every day from things not bullets or poison! Kids, even! If we hadn’t needed to escape, we would have never gotten here, and I’d rather be here knowing more than I did then instead of dying ignorant! I don’t know why, but we were meant to live this!”

That set off Lami again, fresh tears flowing from her. Law gathered her in his arms and pulled her into his lap, which better allowed him to pull his cloak around her as she sobbed into his shoulder. He grit his teeth as he tried to hold back his own tears, wanting to be the strong one… needing to be the strong one…

“Kids! Kids! Where’d you go?!” Both of them gasped and went to wipe the tears and snot from their faces—it was Cora-san! He stumbled into the snow in front of them, looking exhausted and rather worse for wear.

“What happened to you?!” Law gasped. Shit—it had taken fewer bullet wounds to kill both his parents.

“That doesn’t matter,” the man said. He took a heart-shaped fruit out of his coat pocket and held it out. “This is what we were looking for… this is what Doffy was looking for…”

“That’s a Devil Fruit…?” Lami wondered. “It doesn’t look like any fruit I’ve ever seen…”

“It’s a really special thing,” Cora-san explained. “It’s gonna help Law fix you both up, good as new.”

“…but Cora-san, I…!” Law began to protest, only for their caretaker to shove the fruit into his mouth, forcing him to eat it. “Oh, gross! Why the fuck did you do that?!”

“I sure as fuck couldn’t do anything with it, even if I hadn’t eaten my own Devil Fruit,” Cora-san smirked. Although Law was still freaking out over the nasty, meaty taste of what had just been force-fed to him, Lami saw the intense sadness in Cora-san’s eyes… he knew something sad and wasn’t telling them. “You’re the one who’s going to become a great doctor some day, Law. It’s supposed to be yours.”

Just then, the three of them could hear men shouting off in the distance, making them tense.

“Okay, you two find a place that’s not here,” Cora-san ordered gently. “I’ll find you soon as I can guarantee that we can make a clean getaway. Then you’ll be free.”

“Free…?” Lami wondered as they stood.

“Yeah,” he nodded. “Free of this disease, free of Doffy, free of everything you never wanted. You can rescue Baby 5 and the three of you will be freer than anyone on this sea. Do you understand…?”

“I think so…?”

“Good. Now be good brats, for fucking once in your lives.” At that he scrambled off, the kids just barely able to catch him pulling out one of his guns before he turned a corner.

“Asshole,” Law hissed. “Didn’t even ask me if I wanted it…” He saw that Lami was staring at him as they ran and he swallowed hard. “What…?”

“Do you feel any different…?” she asked. He stopped to look at his hands, brow furrowed.

“No, but…” He trailed off, desperately attempting to put what he was feeling into words. “It’s like… the Devil Fruit is trying to tell me what I can do…?”

“Really…?”

“Yeah.” He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, trying to figure out what was attempting to be said.

Heed me, boy, and I shall make you powerful.

Eyes snapping open, Law looked at his sister with a nearly crazed expression. “Lami, hold still; I’m gonna try it on you first.”

“Why?”

“You’re the one with days left,” he replied. The siblings hugged tightly before Law had Lami lay down in the snow, hidden from the snowy path they’d been on. He held his hands palm-down over her and took a deep breath.

“ROOM!”

Suddenly, a blue sphere grew from Law’s hands and enveloped the both of them. Once that was up, he took Cora-san’s knife and held it to his sister’s arm. He pressed down and it made an incision… one that didn’t bleed.

It was working.

Law quickly worked, taking what he knew to be Amber Lead out of his sister’s body. There was so much of it, but he didn’t stop. He couldn’t stop. The only time he did was for thirty seconds, tearing off a bit of his cloak for her to bite on to help with the pain. Okay… anesthetic… he needed to remember that for next time…

Then, all of a sudden, the Room dropped and Law collapsed in the snow. He and Lami were breathing heavily as they looked at each other, both afraid for the other to speak. With a shaky hand, he held up a small rock, not much bigger than a decorative pond pebble. It was much more jagged and rough-looking, however, and a reddish brown where it did not gleam whiter than the snow.

“Five years,” he said shakily. “This should give you five more years.”

“Yeah…?” There were tears in their eyes—that would make her older than he was now.

“Yeah.”

“Fuck, there you kids are!” The siblings looked and saw Cora-san was clamoring over towards them, snow stuck to his hair and coat. “Doffy and his crew are nearly here—I can’t let them find you!”

“Cora-san, look!” Lami gasped. She took the pebble from her brother’s hand and held it up. “Law took this out of me!”

“Wait… you did…?” he marveled. He looked at Law, the boy nodding weakly in the snow as hot tears ran down his face.

“She’s gonna be at least fourteen,” he sniffled. “My sister is going to live!”

“Oh… that’s great!” Cora-san replied through tears of his own. He gathered the children up in his arms and they all shared a hug. “We’re going to get through this—just a little bit longer, and we’ll be free. I promise.”

“Cora-san…?” Lami squeaked. She was clammy with sweat and breathing heavily. “Can we go get Bee-nee? And then we can live somewhere nice?”

“I’m sure you will,” he replied, but she shook her head.

“No, you too, Cora-san!” she insisted. “You can be our dad! And we can live together! All four of us!” She gripped his shirt as her breath became staggered. “The four of us can be each other’s new family!”

“Lami…” Law touched his baby sister’s shoulder and she whimpered. “Is that what you want?”

“Yeah!” She looked at him, then at Cora-san, whose makeup was running from his own tears and sweat. “We can have a real parent again, and Law-nii can continue learning how to be a doctor, and Bee-nee and I can figure out what we want to do, and we’ll all do the best thing we can to make the people who tried to kill us suffer!”

“…and what’s that?” Cora-san asked, his voice wavering.

“We can live!”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-

“Remember something kids: I love you!”

-_-_-_-_-_-_-

A heavy thud rammed against Law’s treasure chest as Cora-san was shot—one, two, three, four, five—making the blood in his veins run cold.

Cora-san! You can’t! Law barely heard the order to leave the Corazón for dead and take the treasure. He pressed his limbs to the wooden walls in panic when he felt the chest being lifted up—this was it! His entire world, dark and filled with fear, swayed with the movement of… yeah, Machvise’s steps as he was carried off and away from the scene of the crime.

It was just like three years ago, when he and his sister hid from their executioners in plain sight, except this time they were in separate hiding spots. Cora-san had been reluctant to do it, but they would not fit together in the biggest chest, and besides… he didn’t want Doflamingo’s crew to take what they thought was the most valuable haul, only to get something invaluable instead. Law kept his mind focused—the clearer he could make decisions, the quicker he could grab Lami, get back to Cora-san, and they could begin figuring out a way to rescue Baby 5.

“Is that everything? Good. Let’s make sure we have enough space first…”

Law listened closely for signs that the Doflamingo Pirates were all occupied before lifting the lid off his treasure chest and carefully slipping out. He couldn’t tell which one had Lami in it before he heard Trebol attempting to swallow the innards of his nasal cavity—he couldn’t get caught! Not yet! He ducked behind a nearby pile of rocks, there already being prints going over there he could step in to hide his tracks. Sure enough, there was a yellow divot against the cliff-face—apparently the ship’s latrine was just too far an ask…

Just then, Law heard the telltale whizzing sound of cannonballs hurtling towards them. They hit the cliff-face opposite him with two loud explosions; it was the Marines.

That’s right… Doflamingo had accused Cora-san of being a Marine, not only by the treasure chests, but after they stole a burner snail a few weeks ago as well. Law and Lami had even accused Cora-san of being a Marine. The only problem was: if Cora-san really was a Marine, then who was he having Baby 5 talk to over the transponder snail? Was she caught? Did she get in trouble? Had… had Doflamingo found out because Baby 5 told him…? It made him sick to think about…

“Leave the rest!” Doflamingo snapped. “We have to get out of here!”

At once, everyone scrambled to board the Numancia Flamingo and escape what was most likely Vice-Admiral Tsuru and her command. Law remained hidden behind the rocks while he waited for them to leave, seeing that they had truly left behind much of the load. Ha… Doflamingo was going to be pissed when they returned to Spider Miles…

Before long, the ships were off in the distance, the only evidence they were even around being the distant sounds of cannonfire. Law shuddered as he heard himself let out a sniffle—Cora-san was dead.

Shit! Shit, shit, shit! The teen began to tremble as he realized that things were going to become infinitely more difficult. Having to go rescue Baby 5 with just him and Lami wasn’t completely out of the question, but it was going to take a lot longer than it would have otherwise. He waited until he couldn’t hear the ships anymore before standing up and poking his head out from behind the rocks.

“Lami…?” He carefully picked his way over towards the heaps of discarded treasure and began to search through what remained. It looked like a lot of the chests were weighed down by rocks as just another way for one brother to get back at another. “Lami…? Where are you…?”

As Law continued looking through the chests, a sense of dread settled over him. Lami wasn’t answering, nor was she in any of the other chests. He got to the last one and asked whatever might be listening to let her be inside…

…and found rocks.

“Lami…?!” Law dropped to his knees and cried, knowing that the worst thing must have happened: she must have been taken aboard the Numancia. “LAMI! NO! YOU CAN’T—!” He stopped to vomit, hot and burning over his tongue and throat.

His sister was gone.

He was alone.

His sister was still dying and there was nothing he could do.

He was alone.

His sister was somewhere off in the far-reaching, icy sea, far beyond where he could feasibly go on his own.

He was alone.

His sister was going to suffer.

He was alone… truly alone.

All while she remained trapped.

Once all the contents of his stomach were melting the snow, Law scrambled onto his feet and began to stumble away. His legs were shaky and he felt like hell, but he kept going—the Marines were likely to come back and he didn’t want to be there if they did. He couldn’t go chasing after the Numancia and rescue Lami in the state he was in, barely able to stand upright or move of his own volition.

If this was freedom, then he didn’t want it.

-_-_-_-_-_-_-

It was difficult for Lami to hear outside of the treasure chest—she wasn’t sure what was going on or where she was, but she had the feeling that she should not move… not until her brother opened the lid and took them both away. The chest had moved a couple of times, which made her cautious, because she didn’t know what sort of place she was going to escape from. All she needed to do was wait until the right time and…

…except, the lid lifted on its own, only for a confused-looking Gladius to be staring down at her. Not Law. Gladius. Not Law. Someone else. Not Cora-san. He was dead.

It was not Law.

She was not free.

#One Piece #fan fiction #fanfiction #Trafalgar Law #Baby 5 #Donquixote Rosinante #Donquixote Pirates #Donquixote Doflamingo #I really enjoy how Baby 5 gets to come into her own in this fic. just saying #lol she's got the brother hoodie fit going on lol that's a good fit #there is also no way Law and Lami were taught by nuns and survived w/o some version of Catholic guilt #my source: being Catholic and having gone to Catholic school (despite the fact none of my teachers were nuns (long story))#(I know OP has Nika not Jesus but work with me here okay?)#Trafalgar D. Water Law #Trafalgar D. Water Lami #Trafalgar Lami #...and please don't ask me about opla i know nothing about opla yet my watch party is in a couple days

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