All was quiet in the palace.
Yet, Anna's eyelids fluttered open. Her room was dark and she was laid flat on her back staring at the canopy of her four poster bed. She was warm and she was comfortable, so why was she awake?
She turned to her left to see Kristoff, sound asleep still, one arm covering his eyes and sighing deeply. He surely hadn't woken her. Anna smiled at her the sight of the love of her life before pulling her eyes away from his sleeping form and looking to her right, out of the window. She knew why she had woken it. Yes, the castle was quiet, but it was too quiet.
She bolted upright in the bed and swung her legs over the side with a small yelp as her feet touched the icy cold floor.
Kristoff's eyes flashed open and he looked over towards his bride to be.
"An-na" he groaned, rubbing his eyes and stretching "What are you doing?"
"Shh" Anna said, turning to smile back at him and letting him know she was fine "go back to sleep"
"What are you doing?" he asked again, watching her jump out of bed and run to the window.
"Look" she said, grinning from ear to ear.
He looked to the window and saw what had gotten her so excited. Snow was falling silently past the palace window. The first natural snow fall of the year, as he presumed Elsa would be asleep in her room. Besides, it was November now after all.
"Very nice, Anna" he said, struggling to keep his eyes open.
Anna giggled.
"Go back to sleep" she whispered, jumping back on to the bed and planting a kiss on his lips.
"I will" he said, and within seconds he was out.
Anna smiled at his sleeping form once again and slid gently off the bed, this time. She watched the beautiful flakes falling in the courtyard, joining the thick blanket of white that was already waiting there, fresh and untouched. She looked out across the fjord and the mountains opposite. Everything was white and the silence surrounded Arendelle. The princess had made up her mind in minutes. She tiptoed to her wardrobe and pulled on her thick dress from her adventures in the mountains back in July. Something about this outfit made Anna very fond of it, but it had just been too warm to wear in the rest of the summer months, even when Elsa was creating magic all over the place.
Anna braided her hair into the signature plaits she had grown to love over the years and pulled on her thick winter cloak and boots before hurrying out of the room quietly. She took one last glimpse at Kristoff, who had buried his face in the pillows and was beginning to snore, before closing the door behind her.
Sprinting down the corridor at this time was sure to wake someone up, especially after she knocked into a huge vase near the staircase. She picked it up quickly and hurried on her way until she skidded to a halt outside a large white door with freshly painted snowflakes on the door frame.
Anna lifted her hand to knock but remembered she didn't have to do that anymore and she let herself in.
The princess jumped slightly to find her sister, not asleep in her bed, but stood at the window, fully dressed in her blue gown and watching the snow fall.
"I wondered when you'd appear" Elsa spoke, not turning from the window but Anna could hear the smile in her voice. She hurried to join the Queen at her window and they both watched the snow fall, this time from the other side of the castle and over Arendelle. Elsa grinned down at her little sister before pulling the window open and leaning out. She reached one delicate hand in front of her and a small snowflake stopped on the tips of her fingers. It did not melt, as it would in Anna's hand, but instead danced merrily along her palm.
"Elsa!" Anna gasped as Elsa took Anna's hand and held it out, before making the snowflake bounce over to Anna's palm. Elsa kept hold of Anna's hand as the snowflake flurried around her open palm. As soon as Elsa took her hand back the little snowflake melted and Anna's face fell.
Elsa closed the window with a snap and turned back to the princess, a huge smile across her face.
Anna immediately grinned back. Seeing her sister smiling was one of the greatest gifts she could have ever asked for.
"Anna?" Elsa asked in little more than a whisper "Do you want to build a snowman?"
"YES, YES, YES!" cried Anna, practically jumping for joy.
"Shhh!" Elsa laughed, before grabbing her baby sister's hand and pulling her out of the room.
They hurried silently down the stairs and out of the castle doors, into the untouched courtyard. Immediately Anna let go of Elsa's hand and threw herself down making a snow angel, laughing loudly as Elsa made a snowball and flung it straight into Anna's face.
Anna scooped her own snowball up already and turned to face her sister, who had made a wall of ice to hide behind.
"That's cheating!" she scalded her sister; but Anna was only greeted with another snowball to the chest and the sound of Elsa's laughter.
"Not fair!" Anna shouted, turning away and sulking.
Elsa immediately melted her barricade and walked towards her sister, when Anna spun and flung a hidden snowball straight at Elsa. Elsa froze it in mid-air, inches from her cheek.
"Cheating again!" Anna cried.
"Don't tell me you wouldn't stop a ball of ice headed for your face, if you could" Elsa said, spinning the snowball on the tip of her index finger, before flinging it up in the air exploding it like a firework, the remnants falling on the two sisters.
"Fine" Anna agreed; anyone would stop a snowball if they could.
The castle doors opened again and a chuckle was heard as Olaf came running down the steps into the courtyard.
"Can I play too?!" He asked bouncing to Anna's side.
"Of course you can!" Elsa smiled.
"What would you like to do Olaf?" Anna asked.
"I don't mind" he smiled up at her.
"Let's build you a friend" Anna grinned back at the snowman.
Without using her magic, Elsa helped Anna roll a large snowball for the snowman's body while Olaf rolled a slightly smaller one for the head.
Elsa searched the snow covered flowerbeds for some pebbles for eyes and buttons while Olaf sat at the feet of the half-finished snowman smiling and chuckling happily.
Anna hurried around the side of the palace to the stables to find Sven who was wide awake, probably from hearing the two girls' snowball fight in the front.
"Hey there, Sven!" Anna greeted him and he snorted in response, hurrying over to her so he could nuzzle her cheek "Can I borrow one of your carrots, buddy?" she asked.
Sven licked her face and bounded over to the carrot back that Kristoff had left the day before. Anna helped herself to a large one before noticing the old sled that the servants used with the horses to move things for parties in winter, tucked away in the corner.
Anna grinned at Sven who looked back at the sled and grunted happily once. She pocketed the carrot and hurriedly hooked Sven up to the sled, sitting in the driver's seat and calling Sven onward. He hurried back to the courtyard with her where Elsa had added eyes and buttons to the snowman and was drawing on a mouth with her powers. She turned at the sound of hooves and laughed as Anna slowed the reindeer in front of the snowman.
"Goodness, Anna!" she exclaimed "I wondered where you'd gone!"
Anna hopped out of the sled and added the carrot to the snowman's face.
"Okay, step back" Elsa said, and Olaf and Anna clambered back into the sled as Elsa animated the snowman.
He sprung to life, bowing to the queen and then to the sled.
Olaf squealed with delight and hurried forward, hugging his new friend.
Elsa hopped into the sled next to her sister as they watched Olaf and the new snowman dance around the courtyard.
"Let's go exploring" Anna said, excitedly.
"Okay" Elsa laughed. "Olaf, your buddy will only last until sunrise okay?"
"Okay" Olaf said waving, as Sven took off towards the palace gates.
"We'll be back by then anyway" Anna called behind her.
Elsa blew a gust of icy snow and wind at the gates and they shot open and they royals headed out in the sled into Arendelle.