Elsa paced in front of the door awaiting the health of the girl they had just rescued.
Elsa had been standing at the edge of the boat admiring the scenery when something caught her eye. At first, she thought it was just a piece of driftwood and she paid no attention to it, but upon closer inspection she realized there was a person on it!
She informed the captain of her discovery and they pulled the girl onto the boat. Elsa only got a glimpse of the girl before she was rushed off to the infirmary.
Now Elsa was pacing at the entrance to the infirmary, waiting for the doctors to come out and tell her of the girl's condition.
Elsa didn't know why she was so concerned about a stranger but something about this girl just made her do so. She wanted to nurse this girl back to health and reunite her with her family.
"Queen Elsa." A voice broke into her thoughts and she looked up to find the doctor staring at her. "The girl is awake now but she refuses to tell us who she is. She's cowering under the blankets, maybe you can calm her down."
"What? Me? I don't think that's a good idea." Elsa said.
"Can you at least try?"
Elsa didn't know how to argue with that so she obliged and went in to see the girl. She saw her small body shaking under the blankets. She asked everyone to leave and sat on the edge of the bed.
She placed a hand on the girl's shoulder.
"Go away! I-I don't want to talk to you!" The girl said.
Elsa sensed her fear. "Hey don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you." Elsa pulled the blankets back to reveal the girl's face. She had soft blue eyes that were full of fear and confusion. There were freckles sprinkled across her nose and cheeks and her strawberry blonde hair was matted against her head.
She seemed to relax when she saw Elsa staring at her and not one of the doctors.
"Hi, my name is Elsa, what's your name?" Elsa asked.
"A-Anna." She croaked out. "My name is Anna."
"Anna? That's a pretty name." Anna smiled at the compliment. "So," Elsa had a lot of questions she wanted to ask Anna but she decided to start small. "How old are you?"
"I'm 17, I'll be 18 in a few days."
"Well happy early birthday."
"Can you take me back home?"
"Sure, where do you live?"
"On an island."
Elsa raised her eyebrow at that response. "What's the name of the island."
"I don't know. I call it home."
"Do you live there with your parents?"
"No. Not anymore. They passed away two years ago."
"So you've been living alone on an island for two years?"
Anna nodded. "Can you take me back?"
"Why do you want to go back?"
Anna shrugged. "I just do."
"What if I told you that you could come back with me? You could have a better life. You wouldn't have to worry about where your next meal would come from and you wouldn't have to be alone."
"Where do you live?"
"In Arendelle. Have you ever heard of it?"
"No."
"Well it's a great place."
"If I go with you, will you put me in the orphanage?"
"No of course not! You can stay with me."
"What if there's not enough room for me?"
"Oh trust me, there's enough room."
So when they got to Arendelle, Anna was in for a real surprise when she found out Elsa lived in the castle.
"Whoa! You live in a castle?!" She asked as she looked around, admiring the decorations. "Does that mean you're the princess or something?"
"Nope." Elsa said as she smirked. "I'm the queen."
Anna gasped. "You're the queen?! Does that mean I have to call you Queen Elsa or Your Majesty?"
Elsa laughed. "No, please don't. Just call me Elsa."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm positive."
Gerda rushed over. "Hello Queen Elsa, how was the trip?"
"It was fine." Elsa said.
Gerda noticed Anna hiding behind Elsa. "Who's this?" She asked.
"Oh this is Anna." Elsa gently pushed Anna in front of her. "We found her drifting in the ocean."
Gerda raised a hand to her mouth and gasped. "Why you poor little thing! Do you have any family?" Anna shook her head. "So you've been on your own?" Anna nodded. "Well you are welcome to stay here. When is the last time you had a bath?" Anna cocked her head to the side and gave Gerda a confused look.
Gerda chuckled. "I guess it's been a while. Come with me, dear."
Anna looked at Elsa then back at Gerda. "Can Elsa come?"
"Yes she can, if she wants to." Gerda said.
Anna looked at Elsa with pleading eyes and Elsa gave in. "Fine I'll come." At first, Elsa was reluctant to watch Gerda bathe Anna but when Anna freaked out when a bubble popped on her face, Elsa was glad she stayed.
Almost everyone warmed up to Anna fast. Her high spirits and cheerful attitude had everyone smiling and laughing when they were around her. A few people found it disrespectful when Anna addressed Elsa by her name and not her title.
Other people found themselves jealous at the love and attention Anna was getting from Elsa while everyone else found it cute and endearing.
Elsa learned quickly that Anna was stubborn. Very stubborn. She refused to wear shoes, even when she went outside. When Elsa hired a private tutor to teach Anna how to read and write, Anna stomped her foot and refused to listen. She even turned down the offer for her own room and opted to sleep on the floor beside Elsa's bed.
But a little persuasion from Elsa and soon Anna was wearing shoes, learning the alphabet and jumping up and down on her bed in her new room.
On the day of Anna's birthday Elsa was bursting with excitement. She had the perfect present for Anna.
Ever since day one, Anna had been talking to Elsa about the island she called home. She would talk about the trees she slept in and the rivers she swam in. She'd talk about the animals she became friends with and the ones she climbed trees to escape from.
Whenever Anna talked about her home Elsa would write down every word she said. Then she searched through countless books until she found the island that perfectly met the description Anna had given her.
And now that very same island was being painted on Anna's bedroom wall. When the painters were done Elsa thanked them and went to find Anna.
She had left Anna with Gerda and asked her to keep Anna busy, but Gerda had trouble keeping up with the energetic redhead. Anna eventually escaped from Gerda's line of vision and ran off looking for Elsa.
"Elsie!" Anna said when she saw Elsa.
Elsa smiled fondly when she heard the nickname Anna had given her. "I thought I told you to stay with Gerda." She said.
Anna laughed nervously. "Yeah, but I got away from her."
Elsa rolled her eyes playfully. "Come on, I have something to show you."
Elsa walked Anna to her room and Anna gasped when she caught sight of the mural on her wall. Anna ran in and started pointing to random places. "This is where I built my first treehouse and this is where I used to fish with my Papa before, you know, he died."
Elsa watched in amusement and fascination as Anna showed her all the places she had been and lived in, which was just about everywhere.
"Wow you know the island like the back of your hand." Elsa said.
"Yeah I do. Do you think I'll ever be able to go back one day?" Anna asked.
"I'm sure you will."
As Anna looked back at the mural Elsa remembered there was something else she wanted to show Anna, something he had been contemplating over ever since she met Anna.
"Anna?" Elsa asked, getting Anna's attention. "I have something I want to show you, but please promise me you won't freak out."
"I promise." Elsa studied Anna's face for a moment before breathing in deeply and summoning snowflakes out of her hand. Anna gasped and looked at Elsa with wide eyes.
"Do it again!"
"Huh?" Elsa asked, still surprised that Anna didn't freak out.
"That was magic! Do it again, do the magic!"
"Ok." Elsa made a ball of snow materialize between her hands and shot it up at the ceiling so it burst, sending flurries of snowflakes falling on them.
"This is amazing!" Anna shouted as she danced around in the snow. "This is the best birthday ever!"
Elsa watched as Anna stuck her tongue out to catch a snowflake. She may not be related to Anna but she had never felt closer to someone in her life before, and she loved it.