A/N: Based upon the deleted song, We Know Better, which discusses Anna and Elsa's childhood friendship.
Chapter 1: You're a Princess, Just Like Me
The sun scorched high in the sky as citizens of Arendelle bustled about in the city below. Colorful ribbons flapped in the breeze, catching the light and glinting cheerfully down at passersby. It was an unusually warm June day, a day where most would have stayed inside with glasses of lemonade. But today was important; today was a special day. Today, a new princess was born.
The news had broken that morning: at dawn, Queen Freya had given birth to another baby girl. The kingdom already adored little Princess Elsa, the King and Queen's firstborn daughter, now a big sister. A celebratory gathering was to take place in the castle courtyard that afternoon to welcome Arendelle's newest joy, Princess Anna. Maypoles had popped up all throughout the town, and every inch of the place had been festooned with bouquets of pink and blue flowers with fat green leaves. Merchants sold small flags that matched the banners pinned onto every lamp post, depicting the Spring Crocus of Arendelle. Along some of the busier streets, ice harvesters had set up small booths, doing great business selling their ice to citizens feeling the heat of the overly warm day. One in particular was attracting a lot of attention due to the presence of a charming miniature ice harvester and a baby reindeer. Passing townspeople couldn't help but stop and coo at them.
Inside the palace, all was surprisingly quiet; a distant world from the colorful rush of activity outside. The only noise was a faint crying, a baby's cry, from the Queen's bedchamber. In her own chamber, Princess Elsa lay upon her bed, arms outstretched to either side. She gazed up at the ceiling, emotionless. Ever since she first heard she would be getting a little brother or sister, she hadn't known what to feel. As long as she could remember, it had been just she and her parents. Would life be more fun with a sister around? Would Elsa be ignored in favor of her sister? Would she like the new baby? Her face screwed up a little, and she could feel frost forming on her fingertips. What if her sister didn't like her? The cries grew louder.
Elsa sat up and swung her legs down the side of her bed, wiping the melting frost on her mauve bedcovers. Her mother had a sister, Josefina, and she spoke of her often, with fondness. Elsa had always been regaled with stories of the mischief that the two of them had gotten up to when they were young. The Queen would always smile and mention that Josefina had been her best friend.
Elsa had never met her aunt. Before Elsa was born, Aunt Josefina had married a prince from a faraway land, and was now queen. The sisters maintained their relationship through letters and other corrospondences, and getting a message or a present from Aunt Josefina was always an enchanting experience. She was expecting, just like Elsa's mother, and her most recent letter informed them that her baby was due very soon. There had been a large gap in letters for some time due to Josefina becoming very sick during her pregnancy, but she had made a miraculous recovery and was doing well.
Mother's sister had been her best friend. Considering this, Elsa decided she liked having a sister. At that moment, Gerda, the head serving maid, appeared in the open doorway and lightly knocked.
"Elsa?" she beckoned, a smile appearing on her soft face. "Are you ready, dear?"
Elsa replied with a nod and hopped off her bed, padding across the worn wood floor.
Gerda took the four year old by the hand. "Then come, child." And she began to lead her down the passageway, following the echoes of the wailing noises.
As they finally came to the source of the din, the noise was nearly deafening. Clapping her hands over her ears, Elsa gave Gerda a confused, almost disgusted look.
"Go on, then, love" Gerda half-yelled, waving a hand at Elsa, gesturing for her to enter.
Elsa took a deep breath and opened the door, the screaming blasting into her face. She entered and saw her mother, laying in her bed, looking more tired than Elsa had ever seen her. But she had a smile playing upon her exhausted face, framed by strands of wet dark brown hair clinging to her face. Her father was kneeling next to the bed, holding her mother's hand. Their expressions changed to excitement when they saw Elsa. King Nikolai rose from his spot next to the queen and put a hand on Elsa's back, escorting her to a blushing pink bassinet adjacent to the bed. Words came out of his mouth, but they were drowned out by the racket echoing out of the bassinet.
Elsa wore a look of uncertainty on her face. The frost was back on her fingertips, ready to intensify into icy spikes at any moment. Her father positioned her next to the bassinet, and she peered down into it. A squirming, red-faced, squishy thing swaddled in a fluffy white embroidered blanket flailed about beneath her gaze. Its face was as pink as the rosemaling on the blanket. Elsa was sure she would go deaf from the screaming, but as the squishy face caught sight of her own face, the wailing ceased. Both of their eyes widened, and Elsa saw that the baby's eyes were as blue as her own. Atop her head was a messy, fuzzy mop of hair, nearly the same red-brown as her father's.
"Elsa," her father began, "Meet your sister. Anna."
Anna giggled and drool gurgled out of the corner of her mouth.
Elsa saw a smile form on little Anna's face, and she couldn't help but notice that the smile bore a resemblance to the one forming on her own face. Elsa held out a finger to Anna, and Anna curled her own tiny fingers around it. The king once again took his place beside his wife, and they shared a proud look.
Her mother called, "Go ahead, Elsa. Say something to her. She loves you already."
"... Hello, little baby..." Elsa spoke to the newborn. "You're a princess, just like me..." She took a breath. "Bet you're thinking, maybe, it's a pretty cool thing to be. But soon, you'll see that everyone expects a lot from you. They say that there are things a princess should and shouldn't do..."
With her free hand, Elsa created a few snowflakes above Anna's little head. Anna let out another happy laugh.
Elsa lowered her voice. "But you and me... We know better."