Chapter 8: Lost.

Anna opened her eyes with great difficulty and scanned her surroundings, noting everything was dark because the curtains were closed, which was a blessing. Because if the few rays that managed to pass through them could considerably worsen her headache and make her want to bury herself between the sheets again, she was sure that facing direct sunlight would make her head explode in pain.

She was hungover, that was very clear, if the smell of alcohol and the intense thirst she felt, combined with the headache were any indication… but why was she hungover? She had promised herself not to drink that much, since she usually did stupid things when she got drunk. What had happened last night anyways? She couldn't remember anything beyond entering the club with Elsa…

Wait, where is Elsa?

As Anna searched with her eyes trough the hotel room, she couldn't find her, and surely the girl wouldn't be up before her after spending all night awake, right? An intense panic started to rise in her chest as she tried to remember where she had left Elsa the previous night. Her head hurt when she tried to pull her memories out of her sore neurons, but she finally managed to slowly recount the events. First, they drank, then danced, then more drinking, then they had scared off anyone who had tried to hit on them, then they had gone out and… Anna blushed at the memory of her flirting (more like molesting) attempts, and groaned when she thought about having to explain her behavior to Elsa… who wasn't there of course, because she had stupidly decided to drink more and use some random girl to make the blonde jealous.

Panicked, Anna looked down at herself and discovered, much to her surprise and relief that she was still dressed with the same clothes of the night before. That and, as she had already noticed, she was alone in her hotel room. But why was she alone? She recalled having tried to follow Elsa after she had realized how stupid she was being… but she couldn't remember much more. How had she gotten to the hotel? Had she managed to catch Elsa? If so, why wasn't she with her? And if not… why had she gone to the hotel without the blonde? Surely she wasn't that selfish and irresponsible to just abandon the clone in a city she didn't know, right? ... Right?

Feeling utterly guilty and consumed with fear of what could've happened to Elsa, Anna got up from bed and quickly searched for a glass of water, which was conveniently placed at the bedside table, together with a couple of aspirins. Just what she needed.

After having somewhat calmed her headache (even if she still felt a drum inside her head, just smaller than the one before), washed off her makeup, changed into more comfortable clothes and put on a pair of sunglasses, the redhead grabbed her purse, made sure that her phone was still charged (it wasn't, but she had a spare battery for cases like this one) and headed out of the hotel, ignoring the throbbing pain generated with each step. When she arrived to her car, she found her driver already waiting for her, black circles under his eyes, so she assumed it was the same driver from last night.

"Hi." Anna greeted him.

"Good morning, Miss Arendelle." He replied politely.

"Are you the one who brought me to the hotel last night?"

"Yes, it was me. I hope that was okay." He answered, as if fearing a reprisal.

"Yes, perfect. Thank you." Anna assured him, because she was pretty sure if he hadn't taken her to the hotel, bad things would have happened to her. "But… uh… do you remember the other girl that was with me? A blonde one?"

"Yes." He answered after thinking for a moment. "But she wasn't with you when you came out of the club." Anna's heart skipped a beat in fear when she heard that response.

"D-did I say something about where she was?" Anna asked, trying to keep herself from trembling in anxiety.

"No, I'm sorry." He said apologetic. "You passed out as soon as you came through the exit." Anna sighed and ran a hand through her bangs, trying to think about what to do now, about how would she find Elsa in this immense city she didn't know all that well. "But…" He added, after he remembered something. "Now that I think about it, you did wake up at some point on the way here. You said you had to find someone called… Elsa?" At this, Anna's eyes widened in hope.

"Did I say where she was?"

"You did mumble something about… Flagendorf street." He frowned. "But there's no street with such a name."

"Flagendorf?" Anna said, deep in thought. That word did sound like something she should know, but it was nothing she could point in that moment; it was like a distant memory. Maybe from where she'd been there with her parents? After the museum she remembered she had gone to some place, a bakery with some strange name she hadn't been able to pronounce and that she had end up calling… yes, she had called it Fagendorfer's bakery! And, now that she remembered, the street where that bakery was, was only two blocks down the club. "I think I know where she is." Anna said, hope and relief returning to her, even if she was still afraid for Elsa. "Take me to the club and I'll guide you from there."

Elsa woke up to the sound of a car horn. Startled, she looked around her and discovered she was in a park bench, near a street where some impatient jerk was constantly making sound his horn. But what was she doing in a park? She didn't remember at first, but soon her memories of the night before came racing back.

The blonde groaned and ran a hand through her bangs. What had she been thinking? Sure, what Anna had said wasn't nice at all, but she could've just went to the car and let the driver take her to the hotel, instead of just running away like that. She didn't know where she was, she was tired, had a slight headache, her feet were sore and she was hungry. All she wanted to do was go to the hotel and lie down… but she didn't remember the name of the hotel, nor the direction in which it was. She was completely lost and unable to contact Anna.

She weighed her options. She could stay there and hope the redhead would find her… but the girl had been completely wasted the night before, and probably by now didn't even remember their fight, much less to where she had run off.

If she even cares about finding me.

She didn't want to think of Anna as a bad person, but since yesterday's incident there were voices in her head telling her bad things about the redhead, and much to her displeasure, she found herself believing them, at least partially. However, she decided she had to stay positive.

Her other option was to try and find the hotel… somehow… not even having it's name… or direction. She could also ask around to see if someone had seen Anna, but she was pretty sure her friend wasn't the only redheaded girl with freckles all over her face around there… Maybe she should try both. It had to be better than to just sit there and wait, right? Even if her feet protested as soon as she got up.

And so, with the little hop she had left, she started walking (with her heels on her hand) towards the nearest place she thought could give her some directions; a small bakery. As she got in, the amazing smell made her stomach protest, growling loudly to make her aware of her hunger. However, she tried to remind herself that her priority was to find Anna; she could eat later.

"Hello." A man behind the counter greeted her. "What will it be?"

"Uhm… actually…I was hoping you could tell me if there's a nightclub around here." She tried giving him a smile, hoping he'd answer.

"A nightclub?" He seemed to think for a moment before responding. "Oh, yes! There's one not so far away from here. Just follow this street two more blocks and turn to the left. From there walk three more blocks, turn to the right and you'll find it."

"Thank you very much." Elsa said relived and was about to turn away and exit the bakery when the man spoke.

"Wait. Are you sure you don't want to taste my famous chocolate cake? It's the best around here, of I do say so myself." He stated proudly.

"I'd love to, but…" Elsa tried to refuse, remembering that strange thing people used as some sort of exchange material for other goods. What was it called? Money? Was it used everywhere? Where could she get some? If she was really hungry and desperately needed food she still had to give him money? She hoped she had asked Anna more about all of this.

"Please, I insist." The man said, getting out a big tray with a delicious-looking chocolate cake, and how could Elsa resist chocolate? Plus, he wasn't asking her for money, so maybe she could just have it? He was offering it to her after all.

"I-I guess I could eat one piece." She relented, stepped forwards and took one of the pieces wrapped in a cellophane paper, before taking it into her mouth and devouring it. It tasted so good! And to her starving body it felt like heaven, and so she decided to take another one… and another one. Only when she was truly full and sure not even one more bite could fit into her swollen stomach, she gave the owner of the bakery a radiant smile. "Thank you. You were right; this cake is delicious."

"I'm glad you liked it." The man said, still smiling proudly. "Now, for three pieces of cake that'll be… thirty."

"T-thirty what?" Elsa said nervously, realizing he must have been referring to money… but she didn't have any.

"Thirty crowns." He said frowning, like he was upset at her for even asking. Gulping, Elsa tried to calm herself enough to answer.

"Is that… some kind of money? B-because I don't have any."

"Then you should've said that before eating my cake!" He yelled, enraged, making Elsa flinch. "Now, you either pay me now or I'll call the police and make them take you to jail."

Jail? Wasn't that a prison? I don't want to be locked again! I can't wait for the police to arrive, I have to get out of here!

Not even bothering to answer, Elsa bolted out of the bakery, noting the owner kept following her. Panicked, Elsa made a few turns, not even caring to watch were she was going, and finally, when she thought she was going to die of exhaustion, she discovered she had managed to lose him. It was a good thing he wasn't exactly fit.

Trying to catch her breath, Elsa sat down with her back against a wall and just stared ahead until her heart wasn't trying to get out of her chest anymore. However, once she started to take in her surroundings, she discovered she didn't have any idea of where she was. Again.

Anna arrived at the bakery without having spotted Elsa even once. Still, she decided it was best to just go in; if the blonde had entered the building she'd just have to ask around, and if not… she'd think of something.

The first thing Anna noticed once she entered the bakery was that there were two police men inside, talking with the owner. That, on its own, was rather strange, but the fact that he was giving them a description matching someone Anna knew all too well, brought the redhead's hopes up.

"So, you're saying she had… platinum blonde hair?" One pf the cops asked, taking notes in a small note book.

"Yes, it was almost white." The baker answered. "She also had light blue eyes and way too pale skin."

"Uh… excuse me." Anna interrupted, making three pair of eyes instantly turn to look at her. "Was she also about my age and wearing a blue dress?"

"Do you know her?" The owner of the shop frowned, obviously about to yell at her.

"I-I'm searching for her." Anna admitted.

"Well, then I think you should know she came here earlier today and stole three pieces of chocolate cake!" He said, utterly upset.

"Stole?" Anna asked, confused. "No, Elsa wouldn't steal anything. She probably just didn't know she had to pay." She deduced, remembering the time they went to the mall and she didn't even have a clue of what money was.

"Yeah, that's what she tried to make me believe. But come on, she was a grown woman! What, did she think it was for free?" He answered, still not believing Anna's story.

"Look, if you tell me where she went, I'm going to pay you for what she took, deal?" Anna said, not wanting to waste more time. The baker seemed to consider it, but at the end sighed in resignation.

"Alright. She wanted to find a nightclub near here and I told her where it was, but then she took off running. I followed her till Roseburg Avenue and lost her there. She'll probably still try to find the nightclub though."

"Oh! Alright, thank you very much!" Anna answered with a huge grin, took out her wallet and handed him a fifty crown bill. "I hope that's enough." She said and then, without bothering to say anything else, took off running.

Elsa had been walking for quite some time now, and she still had no idea where she was. She would've tried asking around, but unfortunately those streets were mostly empty, and the few people she encountered seemed rather busy. Besides, her throat felt so dry she was pretty sure no words would come out of her mouth. She needed to drink some water urgently, and to rest in a place where the burning sun of midday couldn't reach her.

She decided to sit under a tree, in front of a small shop she was pretty sure she'd passed at least three times now. She had been walking in circles despite trying to take different routes each time, and now she felt it was all useless; she wouldn't be able to find Anna at the end and the police would capture her… or worst, the people from the clone center that, no doubt, were looking for her at that exact moment. Maybe they had already figured out where she was and were on their way to kidnap her. Maybe it was best to just give up.

Elsa closed her eyes, and to her it seemed like just a few seconds had passed when someone gently shook her awake. However, when she opened her eyes, she noticed the sun was bit lower in the horizon, indicating that she had been asleep for at least an hour. The one who had woken her up was a young woman, probably the same one that worked at the shop.

"Hey, are you alright?" She asked.

"No…" Elsa tried to answer as she tried to fully wake up, but her mouth felt like sand, and so she couldn't say anything clearly.

"Oh! You need water." The woman exclaimed. "Please, wait a minute." That said, she went into the shop and exited a moment later holding a bottle of water. "Here." She said, handing her the bottle. "Drink, it'll make you feel better."

Elsa took the bottle, but remembering what had happened at the bakery and realizing she couldn't run away this time if she asked her for money, she reluctantly tried to return the bottle to the woman.

"No, it's yours, really." She assured her, but seeing that the blonde wouldn't take it, she kept insisting. "Please, I can tell you need it quite a lot. Actually, judging from your attire, you probably went to a party last night, and you drank." At this, Elsa stared at her, surprised she had deduced all that. "Maybe not to the point of getting hung-over, but the alcohol still dehydrated you." She continued, eyeing the heels she had in one hand. "And then, for some reason, you got lost and walked in circles under the sun, which made you more thirsty, passing my shop three times and eventually falling sleep under the three. Is that right?" Elsa nodded, amazed at this woman's deductive abilities.

"H-how…?" She tried to ask, but obviously couldn't.

"It's happened to me a few times." She answered with a chuckle. "And I know you must really need some water, so please accept it. It's free, I promise."

"F-free?"

"Yeah, you don't need to pay me anything, I just want to help you." Seeing the woman's gentle smile, Elsa decided to believe her. Without thinking twice she opened the bottle and emptied it in just a few gulps, savoring the refreshing sensation it brought to her. Almost instantaneously she felt a lot better.

"Thank you." She said once she'd finished the water and handed the bottle to the woman with a huge smile. "Seriously, I think you just saved my life."

"Hey, it's fine, I know what it feels like." She shrugged.

"Well… I should get going now." Elsa said getting up and shaking the dirt off her dress. "But thank you, really." She gave her another grateful smile that the woman answered with one of her own.

"Where are you going? I recall you were lost so…"

"Oh, that's right!" Elsa had almost forgotten she had no idea where she was. "Uhm... I was trying to return to the nightclub and see if I can find my way from there."

"You mean the one that's at Crowton street?"

"I-I guess… it has to be near here." She answered, because really she had no idea what was the name of the street.

"Well, it's the only nightclub around here, at least the only one I know of." She said. "Just walk in that direction and you'll get to a big avenue, turn to the right and keep walking until you find a pedestrian bridge, cross it to the other end of the avenue and keep waking straight until you're meet with a dead end. There you'll find the nightclub."

"Thanks." Elsa said, memorizing the instructions and hoping she didn't get lost again.

"Alright, goodbye then. I hope you find it." The woman said with a smile.

"Goodbye." Elsa said, returning the smile and starting to walk to where she had told her, albeit with some uncertainty, after all, she didn't remember having crossed any avenues… but then again, she wasn't looking where she was going the night before, so it was possible. She just hoped she was going in the right direction.

Anna had been waking for hours, searching for Elsa (she had convinced her driver that it was better to go by foot when you're searching for someone). She had asked every person she could find, but most hadn't seen anyone fitting her description or hadn't given her precise instructions of where the blonde was.

She was starting to lose hope of ever finding her, but she knew she had to keep going. She couldn't' let Elsa to fend on her own, after all, the girl didn't know anything about life in a big city. What if she got hit by a car? What if she got in trouble for stealing something again? Or what if she was kidnapped or something worse? Or what if (and Anna really didn't want to think of the possibility) she was found by The Clone corporations? That'd be disastrous to say the least.

So no, she couldn't give up on Elsa. She had to keep searching for her, no matter if it took days, or weeks, or even months, she'd find her. This was her fault after all, and she couldn't live with herself if something happened to the clone because of her. She had to amend her mistakes. She had to find Elsa.

And so, the redhead walked into a small shop to ask if someone had seen the blonde, but as she did so, she braced herself to her the same negative response most people had given her.

"Hi." She greeted the shop owner, a brunette woman in her thirties with a friendly face.

"Hi, how can I help you?" She replied with a smile.

"Uh... I'm looking for someone, and I was wondering if you've seen her?" Anna paused, trying to describe Elsa accurately (She had learned after her first few intents that 'dreamy eyes' and 'hips to die for' were not very helpful descriptions in this situation). "She's young, about my age, tall, has very light blonde hair, pale skin and blue eyes."

"Was she wearing a blue dress and had high heels?" The woman asked, making Anna's eyes widen in shock.

"Yes! Did you see her?!" She exclaimed ecstatic. "Did you talk to her? Do you know where she went? Is she still here?... wait, she didn't steal anything, did she? Because I'll pay if she..." Anna finally shut up when the woman held up a hand to silently ask for her to pause. "Sorry." Anna blushed. "I tend to ramble when I'm excited."

"It's alright." The woman answered chuckling. "But to answer your questions, yes, I saw her, she sat under that tree and slept for a while." She pointed to the tree outside the shop. "But she didn't steal anything, I just gave her some water and then she left."

"Do you know where she went?" Anna asked eagerly.

"Yes, she said she was looking for a night club, so I gave her instructions to get to the one that's at Crowton street."

"Crowton street?" Anna repeated, confused, because she didn't think that was the name of the street where the club they had gone to the previous night was.

"Yes, it's actually quite near here. You just have to walk down this street til you get to a big avenue, turn to the right and keep walking until you find a pedestrian bridge, cross it and keep waking straight until you find a dead end. There you'll see the club."

"Alright. Thank you very much!" That said, Anna practically bounced in happiness all the way to the pedestrian bridge. She just hoped she'd find Elsa at the club. That had been the most precise information she'd gotten of her location, after all.

Elsa sat in front of the ocean, watching the sun slowly descending on the horizon, waiting for the time that'll come when it'll inevitably touch the water and disappear, leaving the world in complete darkness. It'd still take a while, maybe a few hours, but she'd decided to wait there until that happened. Why? Because she was lost, she was tired and she was hungry, and she had lost all hope of ever seeing Anna again.

After having talked with the shop keeper, she had found the nightclub... just, not the right one. And when she'd asked if there was another one near there, people had given her confusing instructions until she'd come again to the same club, then had wandered around a few blocks and ended up at a stone pier, where she'd sat to wait and see what destiny would bring.

She was dozing off when a voice suddenly rang out behind her, starting her.

"I think you're a little lost." She knew that voice, she was sure of that. It was the voice she had been hoping to hear all day. Once she turned around, her eyes confirmed what her ears had already told her; it was Anna. She wanted to get up and hug her, but her stunned body couldn't even move a finger. "But then again, I think I'm lost too." The redhead chuckled. "Do you mind if I sit with you?" Not waiting for her to answer, the redhead did just that and stared at the horizon, while the blonde looked at her. "You know? It took me a while to find you, but the thing is... I've been watching you for some time now, just wondering how I could approach to you... after what I did last night, I have no right." She sighed. "But then again, I was drunk. I'm not saying that's justification enough, but... I wasn't thinking clearly. I shouldn't have molested you, and I shouldn't have gotten mad when you rejected my advances. I shouldn't have tried to make you jealous by picking up a random girl and saying she was better than you. I'm sorry." She sighed again and hang her head low in shame. She looked truly sorry.

"Anna..." Elsa tried to speak.

"Wait, let me finish. I had all this speech prepared and I don't want to forget it." The redhead chuckled. "I'm sorry, but I can't change what happened last night. I understand if you don't want to see me again, or something, and I will accept any punishment you want to give me. Even if you want to hit me, or yell at me, or just give me the cold shoulder." She hung her head low. "But I want you to know... that I'll make it up to you. I promise. I will have a surprise prepared for you tomorrow, and it'll be a lovely and unforgettable experience..." She paused, biting her lip. "That's only if you want to, of course. If you don't, I can do anything you ask of me, including disappearing from your life. Just..."

At this, Anna finally turned to look at Elsa, and gave her a sad and fearful look, like she was already expecting to be rejected. "Please tell me you forgive me... o-or that at least you understand that I didn't want to hurt you." She pleaded, almost at the point of crying, and Elsa could see in her eyes that she really regretted what had happened the night before. It was clear that Anna hadn't intended it, and this, together with her heartfelt speech, spoke a lot of how Anna felt about what she'd done.

But truth to be told, though Elsa appreciated knowing that Anna hadn't meant all the awful things she'd said, she discovered she had already forgiven her. It wasn't like she wasn't still a little mad and resentful with the girl... but she had forgiven her the moment she'd seen her.

She was so glad and relieved to see her again, and besides, due to her unkempt state and sweaty forehead it was obvious the redhead had been searching for her all day. Which for itself spoke a lot of how much she cared for her. If all the things Anna had said the previous night had been true, she wouldn't be there at that moment.

"I forgive you, Anna." Elsa said, giving her a little smile.

"Really? Just like that?!" Anna asked, utterly surprised. She had thought it'd take a lot more to earn her forgiveness.

"Just like that? Anna, you came all the way here to find me. I think that was enough punishment for what you did." Elsa answered giggling.

"Uhm... well, if you say so." Anna shrugged. "You're the judge in this case."

"And about the surprise... as long as it doesn't involve going to an amusement park or something like that... I'd love to see it." She said smiling.

"Of course!" Anna exclaimed, finally smiling and looking somewhat relieved. "But I think we should go to the hotel first." At this, the redhead tried to get up, but she ended up falling beside Elsa when her legs refused to support her weight any longer. "Ugh. I guess I should call the driver before I attempt to get up again. I'm sooooo tired."

"I know, I'm tired too." Elsa chuckled.

"But you know what the good part about all this is?" Anna asked in playful tone. "You got a new experience: getting lost in a big city. That's something you couldn't have done at the clone center." She laughed.

"I guess you're right." Elsa said giggling a little.

And then Anna leaned in until her head rested on Elsa's shoulder, humming in content as she got up her phone and texted the driver. For the first time that day she finally felt at peace. Because she was finally with Elsa.

A/N: Sorry for the delay, I've been really busy lately :P. Despite that, I hope you like this chapter and review/favorite/follow if you did. I also would like to know what you would think this surprise Anna is planning will be ;)

Anyways, see you soon (Hopefully XD).

Thanks to my beta reader moonwatcher13