Anna hopped onto Kip and raced towards the mountains. Tears ran down from her blue eyes, making it difficult to see clearly, but she didn't care. She had to get away from her father. She couldn't go to that damn Ladies' College. Not only that, but her feelings were crushed by her father's literal slap to the face.

Thunder rolled in the distance, but she kept pushing forward. Maybe the coming storm would keep her father's group of men sent to find her off her back.

Searching the top of the mountains, Kristoff rode on Sven. He was still looking for the cattle strays. As fog began to settle in the woods, making it feel eerie. He wanted to find them before the storm hit.

Thankfully, he spotted them through the fog. "All we need's a butterfly net." He chuckled to himself.

He quickly rounded up the cattle and led them back to the Harrison property. He wanted to prove that he could get this done easily by himself. "Giddap, girls." He called out after a whistle.

As he slowly went down the mountain, Anna trekked higher. She had calmed down from the fight with her father but wasn't ready to go back. She couldn't go back until the train had left. Unfortunately, that meant finding somewhere to safely stay the night. The wind had picked up, sending a chill down her spine. She hopped off of Kip and looked around. She was lost.

Kristoff corralled the beef cattle then lit a fire. He hid under a blanket to hide from the approaching storm and to rest for the night. He was still contemplating about leaving though. Maybe he should stick it. It might help prove that he was ready to live in the high country. Plus, maybe he could fix things with Anna.

xxx

The wind blew the hard rain against Anna as she walked with Kip. It was dark and she was cold and wet. She would give anything to be back at her house. Actually, she wanted to be with Kristoff more than anyone.

She tried to pull Kip further, but he stomped his hooves into the ground. She groaned, pulling on his lead. He began to nicker, raising onto his hind legs. Thunder clapped loudly in the sky, setting Kip off. He tugged hard, freeing himself from her grip.

Anna slipped in the mud, falling off the edge of the cliff. She screamed, slipping down the side. She let out a grunt, her body slamming onto an edge. She shakily pushed herself up, her lips trembling from adrenaline and cold. She cowered closer to the mountain, afraid of falling to her death. She was trapped here until the storm ended.

xxx

Jackson walked out of the house as the sun began to rise. "I don't understand. She's never done anything like this before." He said. The thunder rumbled in the distance.

"They've been drinking since they got back with the cattle," Ralph explained.

"The weather's turning bad, we gotta find her quick." Jackson pressed. He couldn't stand the thought of Anna out there alone. She could get killed.

"They're not going to be any use to us." Ralph continued.

"What?" Jack asked, stopping to listen. He wasn't really paying attention before. All he could think about was Anna.

"The men are drunk. They won't be any use to us." Ralph repeated. He hated having to repeat himself, but he was on good terms with his boss and didn't want to ruin that.

"I want them ready to ride in ten minutes," Jack demanded. This was life or death. Anna could be battling a deadly storm without knowing how to make it through. If they didn't hurry, they put her at risk.

Ralph nodded his head. "Yes, sir."

The rooster crowed as Ralph entered the cabin. He easily spotted the men passed out drunk in their beds and on the floor. "All right. Up. He wants all men."

"Eric, you got five minutes to be dressed and outside." Ralph continued, walking to each man. "Hans. Hans!" He shouted, picking up the man by his shirt. He scoffed, the man still passed out cold. "God save us." He mumbled as he shoved Hans to the ground. Even when he hit, he still didn't move.

He walked over to Shang. "Come on, old man. I need you."

Shang shot up, cocking his gun. "It was him or me." He muttered.

Ralph grabbed the gun, staring at Shang. "You better be careful what you say in your sleep." He warned. Shang ran his hands down his face as Ralph continued. "Now, Anna's gone and got herself lost. I need a tracker and you're it."

"I can't even see to find my boots," Shang mumbled.

"Well, go without them," Ralph said. "Five minutes!"

xxx

Anna woke up, her head pounding. Ugh. Where was she? And why did she have such a horrible night's sleep? She rolled upright, rocks crumbling around her.

Her eyes shot open as she stared down at the ground far below. She let a scream, placing her back against the mountain. How was she going to get out of this mess? She peeked over the side and nearly fainted. Oh, she was so high up. And the mountain was so steep. She was going to die here.

She longed to see Kristoff's face again. His gentle hands and kind brown eyes. Why did their last conversation have to be a fight? Oh, where was he now? Was he possibly looking for her? If only she could hear his laugh one last time.

Kristoff was not too far away, leading the cattle back to Jackson when he spotted something unfamiliar. He stopped Sven, seeing the horse hooves pressed deeply into the fresh mud. Someone had to have just been here to leave these.

Only one person came to mind.

Jackson and his men plowed through the forest looking for Anna. The sun was now rising in the sky and the thunder rumbled louder. Ralph rushed up to Jackson. "Boss, the men are exhausted. And there's a storm coming up."

"And my daughter's out there in it."

Ralph knew where Jackson was coming from, but he didn't see the point. "In a few minutes, we're not gonna be able to see anything." He said.

A scowl formed on Jackson's face. "Then stay here and rot."

He took off, leaving the men behind. He had to find Anna. He needed to save his daughter from the dangers deep in the high country. Every hour that passed, the more hope he lost in finding her.

Kristoff left the cows alone, knowing they would be fine without him and that they'd be easy to track again. He wandered through the trees, hoping to find her somewhere and soon. She could be injured or worse.

He came to a large formation of slippery rocks. The tracks stopped here. He hopped onto the rocks, looking around. Suddenly, he spotted it. He jumped to the ground and rushed to the horse laying on its side. "Kip?" He asked. "Anna?"

Kip was cold, clearly dying a long time ago. Fear shot through his body as he stood up. "Anna?" He shouted. His voice echoed off of the mountains. "Anna!"

No. No, he couldn't lose someone else too. Not like this. Not this soon. "Anna!" He cried out. Where could she be? Where could she have possibly gone?

Kristoff rushed through the herd of strays. They were out in the open grazing on mountain pasture. He wasn't worried about them anymore. He needed to find Anna. He had to make sure she was safe.

Anna built up all of her courage and stood on her shaking legs. She had to try. She wasn't going down without a fight. She took a deep breath and flipped herself around slowly. Her hands gripped the mossy rocks as she began to scale the mountain.

It wasn't too hard after first. But the mountain was so steep. And she hardly had any strength left. She was so tired and hungry. Her legs couldn't find a good hold and she slipped down, slamming into the rock ledge again.

Jackson went back to his crew, hoping maybe they had found something. Shang stood up from where a fire was still smoking. "Boss, there's no hope of finding any tracks after all that rain."

"Better keep looking." He demanded.

"Anna!" Kristoff shouted, trailing along the edge of the mountains. She could be anywhere. "Anna!" He called, his voice echoing back at him.

"Anna!"

She stirred. Was she going crazy? Did someone just call her name? She sat up, listening closer. "Anna!" The echo repeated over and over.

She stood up, gripping the rocks just above her head. "Help!" She shouted, her voice sounding scratchy. "Help me!" She pleaded, her voice echoing around her.

She frowned, knowing how difficult it would be to find her on this ledge. "Oh, help." She muttered to herself.

"Anna?"

Someone could hear her. Someone could find her.

Suddenly, there he stood just above her. He lowered down his whip, a smile growing on her face. He had saved her. Kristoff had found her. Once it was in her reach, she tightly gripped the rope and let him pull her up to safety.

xxx

She walked around the fire, a blanket wrapped around her body. Kristoff knelt beside the fire, running one of his hands through his hair. "So that's it, eh?" He asked. "No more working for the old-" he paused, watching her sit down on a log. "-your father." He corrected.

He chuckled, staring into the fire. "Never thought I'd be sorry about that, but I am."

"Why are you sorry?" Anna asked, watching him. She was indebted to him. He had saved her life.

"I'll miss seeing you." He replied.

"You won't miss seeing me," Anna said, watching him. "'cause I'm not going back." She finished. Kristoff turned and looked at her. Was she crazy? What was she thinking? Not going back? That was foolish.

"Come on, Anna. You can't-"

"No, listen," she interrupted. She stared into his brown eyes, pouring her heart out to him. "When I was trapped on that cliff, I was terrified, but that passed, and . . ." She trailed. "I started to see things very clearly."

Kristoff furrowed his eyebrows, confused at what she was saying. Anna let out a sigh, just going to straight out say it. She had to spill out her feelings now before it was too late. "All I wanted was to see you again, to be with you."

Kristoff looked down, unsure what to say. He felt the same about her, but he hadn't allowed himself to feel this way. "Nothing else." Anna smiled. He looked back into her blue eyes again. "And so I hung on until you came."

Kristoff slightly shook his head. "Anna, I . . ." He trailed.

She smiled, hoping he felt the same about her. Her heart ached to be away from him and she felt so happy being with him. Wasn't this what love was? The joy of just being with someone who made you feel important and that you cared deeply about?

Kristoff furrowed his eyebrows, deep in thought. He jumped to his feet, pacing around the fire. They couldn't possibly work. Her father hated him. He had broken in his thousand-pound colt and tried to chase after the brumbies with it. To top it all off, he was from the high country. Not exactly prime husband material.

He ran his hand through his blonde hair, thinking about what to say. He truly did feel the same way about her. But he couldn't admit that. That would only crush her spirits when her father denied their relationship. "I have to take you back." He said, his back turned to her.

"I'm not going back." She cheerfully said. She would do whatever it took to stay here with him. She didn't care if he was from the high country. She didn't care if all he had was a bark bungalow. All she wanted was to be with him.

"They'll be worried sick about you." He argued.

Anna shook her head. "I don't care."

Kristoff slightly shook his head in anger. Couldn't she see what was at stake here? "There'll be men out lookin' for you, riskin' their lives." He said. He shook his head again, running his hand over his hair. "Anyhow, I've gotta get the cattle down."

Cattle? All he could think about was the cattle? "Haven't you been listening to me?" Anna scoffed.

"Yeah," Kristoff replied, a mix of emotions on his face. "It's just that . . ." He trailed, looking at her face. "I have to finish this job."

Anna tried to keep her feelings inside. Couldn't he see how much he meant to her? How much she wanted to stay up here in the mountains with him? And all he wanted to do was finish his final job for her father. "I'll take you to Eugene's place and come back for the cattle," Kristoff said.

She stood up, turning her back to him. Maybe she shouldn't have said all of that stuff. Maybe she should have kept it to herself. "I'm sorry." She said, her heart slightly broken. She took a deep breath, trying to keep her voice from shaking. "It's just everything seemed so clear to me."

She slightly sniffed, hoping he couldn't hear her.

But he did. He turned around, looking at her. He had to tell. He couldn't keep tiptoeing around the subject and let her think that he didn't care for her as well. He had to let her know how he felt.

He walked over to her and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. She slowly turned around, her eyes bloodshot and tears beginning to trail down her face. "I'm sorry." He said.

Knowing what he meant, she leaned against him, placing her lips on his shoulder as he pulled her close. She closed her eyes and laid her head on his shoulder. It felt so good being in his arms again.

She gently pulled away, but his hands never left her body. She let out a deep exhale, looking around. "It's so peaceful here." She said. She looked back at his face, staring into his soft brown eyes. "It's like we're the only two people on Earth."

His hand found her chin, gently holding it as he gazed into her bright blue eyes. Anna softly smiled, holding his hand in place. Then slowly, he leaned in close, placing his soft lips on hers. She closed her eyes, savoring the moment. The smell of the mountain and smoke on his clothes. The taste of pine on his lips.

They pulled apart for a second, then couldn't bear to stop. Their lips met each other again, this time with more urgency.

xxx

They had spent the rest of the day and night up there on the mountain together. It felt so wonderful being alone together. They were able to be themselves without anyone judging or say something to ruin the moment. It really was like they were the only people on Earth.

"You ready then?" Kristoff asked as he saddled up Sven. She softly nodded her head. Kristoff had talked some sense into her last night. He was right. She needed to go back down to her father. Men were risking their lives for her.

So she held onto Kristoff as they rode off to Eugene's place. Anna couldn't help but admire the gorgeous scenery as they rode through the high country. Why were the people below so against this place? Couldn't they see how gorgeous it truly was?

Kristoff stopped Sven, swinging one of his legs over to rest. "Oh, Kristoff, it's-" Anna grinned. She looked at his smiling face under his hat. "It's beautiful." She finished as thunder rumbled in the background.

"But wait till that gets here." He said, nodding towards the storm in the distance.

"It changes so suddenly, doesn't it?" Anna said. Kristoff took off his hat, looking back at her. "One minute, it's like paradise, and . . .the next, it's trying to kill you."

"Yep, that's how it can be up here." He agreed. "But, uh, if it was easy to get to know, there'd be . . .no challenge."

Interested in what he was trying to say, Anna rested her chin on his shoulder. "You've gotta treat the mountains . . ." He trailed, trying to find the right words. "Like a high-spirited horse. Never take them for granted."

"It's the same with people too," Anna replied. Kristoff leaned over, his lips meeting hers again. Sparks felt like they were flying as that sat on top of the mountain, wind blowing through their hair.

They rode off into the sunset, thinking only of each other as they headed to Eugene's.

~~~~~~~~~~