Disclaimer: I do not own Frozen or any of its characters.

AN: This was suppose to be a one-shot prompt but it kinda just became THIS, so it'll prolly be a few chapters long, just depends on what I come up with. Leave some feedback, like/fav, all that jazz. Hope yall enjoy!

Chapter 1

Elsa had begun to experience terrible insomnia and night-terrors soon after the Great Thaw. It had gotten to the point that she couldn't bring herself to sleep at all, her weary body and bleary-eyed stares drawing concern from the Councils during their daily meetings. She hadn't admitted it to anyone but the dreams were always the same. Her sister's frozen body, the sounds of her final cry, "Noooo!" before the magic in her heart turned her to ice. But in her dreams the ice didn't thaw, and slowly her sister's body flaked away until it shattered into thousands of ice fragments before her eyes.

It wasn't until she nearly collapsed during their evening meal that her sister caught on to the Queen's weariness, though Elsa was sure she'd noticed the signs long before then. It was probably the newness of their renewed sisterhood that kept the younger royal from commenting until that time.

Elsa had begun to excuse herself from the table, hardly having touched her evening meal, when her vision turned dark at the edges and she found herself on her side, a sharp pain emanating from her hip. Her sister's voice was close by, warm hands braced against the blonde's shoulders, but Elsa could barely make sense of the words at first.

"Elsa, are you okay?" the redhead was saying fervently. The Queen looked up to see a concerned look on her sister's face, her brows furrowed. The look on her beloved little sister's face conjured the memory of her dreams so quickly that pain lanced through her heart, bringing her instantly to tears.

"Oh, Elsa!" Anna cried, wrapping her arms soothingly around the older woman. "What is it, Els? What's wrong?"

"A-Anna," she sobbed. "I-I thought I'd l-lost you!" she cried harder at the admission, the torrential emotions she'd been holding back flowing from her as the dam broke and everything she'd been suppressing tumbled out. "So cold…you were so cold! I can't lose you!"

Elsa was vaguely aware of the snow flurrying around them, but she couldn't bring herself to pay it any mind. The temperature in the room had fallen drastically but Anna didn't give her any indication that she noticed. She just held the sobbing blonde as she cried her heart out, the pained sound bringing tears to the redhead's own cheeks. She cooed softly to her older sister, rubbing her back soothingly and talking nonstop reassuring words.

When the tears had run their course and the Queen was spent, she continued to sit there in her sister's arms. It was the only time she ever felt warm, content and safe, in her sister's embrace. It was only in that vulnerable state that she allowed herself to truly enjoy the feelings her sister's touch evoked in her. She nuzzled against the redhead's shoulder where her face was buried; breathing in the scent of spring and chocolate that was uniquely Anna.

Afraid of what she'd see in her sister's eyes, Elsa willed herself to draw back and meet the redhead's gaze. But all she saw there was love and concern, those beautiful teal eyes shining in the candlelight around them. Her eyes drifted down to Anna's soft pink lips and she caught her breath, willing herself to look elsewhere. She couldn't let her sister see just how deeply she cared for her. She wouldn't understand, and Elsa couldn't take her sister's rejection so soon after they had just been reunited. And besides, Elsa didn't even understand it herself.

"You want to talk about it," Anna said softly, and for a heart-stopping second Elsa thought her sister knew where her thoughts had just drifted. Then her weary mind caught up and she realized her sister was referring to her sudden breakdown.

She slowly shook her head. "I just haven't been sleeping well," not at all, she thought. "I've been…having nightmares. About that day on the fjord."

Admitting it was probably the hardest thing she'd done, but doing so felt like a weight lifted itself from her, and so she continued, "I keep seeing you there, frozen and lifeless. But you never thaw, you never come back to me." The tears were falling again, she could feel the cold tracks freezing midway down her cheeks, but she kept talking, unable to stop. "I can't lose you, Anna, I can't!" She looked up into her sister's eyes, willing her to see, to know just how much she cared for her in that moment. "I'm so afraid that I'm going to wake up and the nightmares will be real. I'm afraid to sleep…"

Anna took her cheeks in her hands, the warmth from her palms thawing the frozen tears on her sister's cheeks as she brushed her thumbs across the tracks. "Oh, Elsa, I'm right here. I love you. That love saved us both, and you should trust in that if nothing else."

Elsa nodded, her eyes never leaving her sister's. There was so much trust and intense passion in them, and it reminded Elsa of why she loved her sister so deeply. Her fiery little sibling was the embodiment of living, passionate and honest, taking everything in life in stride and embracing the world with a vigor that Elsa envied. She envied everything about her sister, most especially that forgiving heart. After all the Queen had done to her, that sweet, beautiful sister of hers was still right there, believing in her when Elsa couldn't even bring herself to believe.

"I love you, too," she whispered, not trusting her voice to not crumble if she spoke any louder. "I trust you, more than you'll ever know. I'm just so scared, and I'm so tired."

Anna smiled suddenly, nodding as she slowly stood and pulled her sister up with her. After she made sure Elsa was steady on her feet, she said, "I want to get you to see the physician and have them give you something to help you sleep. You can't keep going on like this."

"But—" Elsa began, her sister cutting her off with a sharp look.

"No 'buts', dear sister," she said sternly. "It's time for me to take care of you, my Queen. I'm sure there's a rule somewhere that says I can make these kinds of decision when you're putting your health at risk." Elsa looked up from her slouch to see her sister smirking down at her and she couldn't help but laugh softly at her sister's teasing antics. She always knew just what to say to bring a smile to her face. And, of course, she was right.

Nodding, Elsa said quietly, "Okay, you win. Your Queen shall acquiesce to your valid, however unwelcome, arguments."

Anna stood with her back straight, nodding importantly at her sister. "Very good," she said in the haughtiest tone Elsa had ever heard from her, ruining the entire picture by giggling, breaking into a grin. "Now come on, your royal pain, let's get you some rest."

Before she could form a retort, her sister was whisking the blonde away, guiding her quickly to her chambers, stopping along the way to have a page summon their physician to the Queen's chambers. Not a minute passed after Anna had settled her sister into bed before their Royal Physician, Thelma, came rushing into the room with a large bag. Anna stood to the side as the matronly woman began fussing over the Queen, checking her temperature and asking her questions and quickly concluding that her majesty was suffering from exhaustion and ordering bedrest for the eldest sister.

She pulled a bottle from her bag and handed it to Anna. "This will help her majesty sleep, but do make sure she only takes one spoon-full at a time. It is a very potent sedative and she will sleep very deeply." She turned back to the queen and bowed low. "Please take tomorrow off from your duties and rest as much as you can. After that, I suggest limiting your workload until you've had a few days of good rest. Okay, my Queen?"

Elsa smiled kindly and nodded. "Yes, thank you, Thelma. Your kindness is appreciated."

The older woman bowed again, beaming at the young Queen. "Will you require anything further from me, your Majesty?"

The weary blonde shook her head, nodding regally to the other woman. "No, that will be all. Thank you again for your services."

The physician gave a final bow to both the Queen and Princess before gathering her bag and taking her leave of the royals. Anna took a seat on her sister's bed beside the tired sibling. "Here," she said, pouring out a dose of the syrupy medicine and holding it out to her sister. Elsa cringed but obliged and opened her mouth, almost gagging at the taste of the nasty concoction as it coated her tongue and throat, swallowing hard.

"Mmm!" she couldn't speak, hoping her eyes would be able to convey her need to her sister. Luckily the younger woman seemed to understand as she quickly retrieved a glass of water, which the blonde gladly took, drinking deeply to wash away the horrid taste. "Gah, that is disgusting!" she finally said.

Her sister laughed at the look on Elsa's face, smiling at the most un-queenly look she'd ever witnessed on the blonde's face. "Oh it can't be that bad!"

The look she sent her sister made Anna's laughter bubble over even more. "You try it then," she said, her voice thick with revulsion.

Shaking her head, her sister smiled at the Queen. "Nope, it's all for you, I wouldn't want to waste any of it."

Elsa glared at her sister's cheeky grin, but her retort was interrupted by a huge yawn, her hands covering her mouth. Suddenly all too aware of how tired she was, she sighed. She was still so scared to rest, but with the medicine working its way through her body she wouldn't be able to resist much longer. Turning a worried eye to her younger sibling, she said in a small voice, "Will you stay with me?"

Anna's eyes softened, her voice gentle. "Yes, of course." She turned and got into bed beside her sister, settling in close to the older woman's body, her arm wrapping around Elsa's waist. The warmth of her younger sister's body settled across her cool skin soothingly. It was peaceful and relaxing as Elsa felt herself beginning to drift away, and the last thing she heard before sleep took her was her sister's precious voice whispering, "I love you."