Chapter 13: Arachnophobia

A/N: Thank you all so so much! Just so you know, the next chapter is called "Sleepover". And it means what you probably think it means.

Well, with Elinor checking up on the out-of-state branches of the family's stores, Merida was finally able to set up the romantic picnic she'd been wanting to give Elsa. She'd asked Maudie to make up a nice packed lunch for her (as she was quite incapable of cooking herself and figured Elsa would appreciate the food to be edible). Maudie seemed annoyed at the request, seeing as she had to tend to the three boys that loved to give her an endless amount of trouble. But that wasn't Merida's problem. She was focused on giving her girlfriend a relaxing, picturesque date.

Admittedly, that gooey, tender stuff held little appeal for Merida. She'd much rather be bonding by getting dirty running through the mud or sword fighting until her arms felt like they were going to fall off. But Elsa was a proper lady and she deserved to be treated like one. She'd learned that lesson from her father, though she supposed he never thought she'd actually need the advice herself.

Anyhow, Elsa absolutely adored the idea of the picnic. And when Elsa loved something Merida did for her, it meant she got rewarded. And the reward ended up being much sweeter than swordplay.

The food had been abandoned, pushed to the side after a quick meal to make room for them to stretch out. Merida didn't want to waste time, so she'd ended up on top of Elsa quite quickly, comfortably straddling one of her thighs. Elsa didn't mind at all, and only encouraged her with more kisses. Finally, Merida's hands were able to explore her as they'd wanted to for so long.

Elsa was so caught up in the moment she didn't realize it was her who was moaning until she felt Merida's hand in a new place and their lips disconnecting. Elsa's head fell back against the blanket, and she gasped for breath.

"Ohh yes," she breathed, twining her fingers into Merida's thick curls. She whimpered as the redhead's lips found a sensitive spot against her neck to suck and bite.

"Mm. Don't leave a mark," she warned weakly.

"No fun," Merida laughed, moving her lips slightly lower.

"I never wear scarves. People will be suspicious if I start now."

Merida's hand moved lower, and Elsa tried to contain her excitement at the thought of where it was headed. She let her own palm caress Merida's bared thigh. Before she could arch into Merida's touch, however, her blood ran cold. She froze in place as something distinctly hairy skittered across her ankle.

"M-Merida," she whispered.

Smirking, believing it was her impressive skills causing Elsa to stutter her name, Merida lifted her gaze. What she saw was Elsa wearing a serious frown.

"I think there's something on my leg."

Elsa said quietly. Merida squinted.

"Something on your...? What?" She removed her hands from their places and sat up. Elsa's eyes nearly popped out of her head. As she had feared, a spider sat on her ankle.

"Get it off!" Elsa quickly swung her leg and accidentally caught Merida in the gut with her knee. Merida rolled off with an 'oof'. Clutching her stomach, she sat up.

"Och!" Merida scoffed. "It's just a wee spider. It won't hurt you!"

"But you don't understand. I hate spiders."

The offending creature hurried along the edge of the blanket.

"Kill it!" Elsa shouted.

Merida couldn't believe this was happening. She reached over and smacked it with her hand, much to Elsa's horror.

"There. Dead." She held up her palm, where the gushy remains of eight smashed legs remained. Elsa turned her head in disgust.

"I really don't need to see it."

Merida swiped her hand along the blanket.

"It didn't even bite you. Was it really worth kicking me for?"

Elsa suddenly gasped.

"Did I hurt you? I did overreact a little."

She got to her knees.

"It's nothing a little kissing won't fix," Merida answered. She leaned in to receive one, but Elsa stood up instead.

"Okay, but not on the blanket. There might be more where that one came from."

"You mean the spider? Are you serious? We're in the woods! They're everywhere!"

Elsa shuddered.

"I know. Please don't remind me."

Merida sighed and got up. She was losing hope of getting back to what they had been doing just moments ago.

"First my mum, then a broken bottle, now a bloody spider," she mumbled under her breath. But Elsa's hair was out of place, her lipgloss smudged, and her cheeks still showing a bit of pinkness against her light complexion. She looked too adorable. Merida stepped forward and kissed her without another word. Her hands found her hips and she pulled Elsa forward. But when Merida's curls brushed Elsa's face, the older girl jumped nervously.

"What?" Merida asked, seeing Elsa squirm.

"I-it just- your hair- I was thinking about spiders again."

Merida groaned.

"Let me guess. Your mood has been ruined?"

Elsa looked at her shoes and nodded sheepishly, hoping Merida wouldn't be too angry. Elsa had spent much of her life indoors and away from all the creepy-crawly-fuzzy-buzzy things. What didn't bother Merida in the slightest had the opposite effect on her.

"But," she said slowly. "Your mother is away for the week, isn't she?"

"Yeah," Merida said, not thinking much of it. Though she was a little frustrated, it had nothing to do with Elsa. She could never be mad at her for something like that, and she would never do anything to her that she didn't want.

"Well," Elsa continued, "If you aren't busy on Friday, I'd like to take you to dinner."

Merida went through the calendar in her head. Friday was two days away.

"That sounds nice," she answered with a sideways smile. "I'm not busy."

"Good." Elsa said. Then, with a breath of air, "You could come over to my house afterwards."

Merida blinked.

"Oh?"

"Mhm. My sister won't be home from University until next week. She's in an extended program. So. We'd have the place to ourselves."

Sensing her nervousness, Merida squeezed Elsa's hand in reassurance.

"I'd really like that."

Elsa gave her a relieved smile, and rested her head against Merida's chest. Merida kissed the top of her blonde hair.

"I can even get us reservations to Menzella's," Elsa said, not moving from her comfortable position. "Would you like that?"

Merida balked. Menzella's was a fancy seafood restaurant on the bay where an appetizer cost more than she typically spent on a full meal. Merida had money, of course, but she avoided upper class establishments if she could help it. Her father preferred conducting business dinners and family outings in nice-enough pubs. It was her mother who wanted high snobbery in the form of tiny portions arranged delicately on platters and thin flutes of champagne.

"Anna and I go there a lot, so I know that it's good. Or, is that weird? That I would take you to a place my sister and I go to?"

Actually, Merida was highly touched by that fact. It meant it was a place Elsa was comfortable with. No doubt she'd be full of nerves that night. It would be best if she was in her element, even though Merida would feel a tad out of place.

"No, that sounds perfect. But let's not make it a double date quite yet."

"Promise. I'm not ready for that either." She smiled up at her girlfriend. Merida smiled back and started to guide her towards Angus.

"Come on, let's get you out of this supposedly terrible forest."

"It's not all that bad," Elsa mused aloud. She put her helmet on while Merida collected the blanket and dishes and shoved them into the basket again. "And I always love spending time with you."

Merida grinned and shook her head. Somehow, Elsa was turning her into a goofy romantic. If her mum ever found out, she might be more shocked that Merida was willingly going on cheesy dates than the fact she was dating Elsa. But Merida couldn't bring herself to be shocked. Elsa was...well, she was unique.

"Next time we're bringing insect repellent."

Merida hugged her one more time.

"Whatever works for you, snowflake."